NEWSLETTER
Another midseason prospect update is in, and MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo has a slightly different take on the Cubs’ system than other services – though the players at the top generally remain the same.
The top 20 (and you can see the full list here for a scouting report on each):
1. SS Javier Baez
2. OF Albert Almora
3. OF Jorge Soler
4. 3B Kris Bryant
5. 3B Mike Olt
6. RHPArodys Vizcaino
7. RHP Pierce Johnson
8. IF Arismendy Alcantara
9. OF/IF Junior Lake
10. OF Matt Szczur
11. 1B Dan Vogelbach
12. RHP C.J. Edwards
13. OF Brett Jackson
14. 3B Christian Villanueva
15. OF Jae-Hoon Ha
16. 3B Jeimer Candelario
17. RHP Paul Blackburn
18. RHP Duane Underwood
19. 2B Gioskar Amaya
20. RHP Alberto Cabrera
One thing that probably jumps out at you right away is that Mayo has not yet jumped aboard the Alcantara train that everyone else is riding. Mayo also isn’t ready to drop Vizcaino too aggressively just yet, despite not pitching for the better part of two seasons after Tommy John surgery and then a follow-up bone spur surgery.
Pitchers Kyle Hendricks, Juan Paniagua and Rob Zastryzny are absent, which is tough to defend (each arguably merits a spot in the 8 to 12 range), but notice the crazy thing: look at the back-end of the list. It’s not like there are a bunch of non-prospects there. That’s how absurdly deep the Cubs’ system has become in the last two years.
On the top 100 overall, the Cubs landed five – and it’s the top five on the list up there, with Javier Baez up at number 11, Albert Almora at 25, Jorge Soler at 30, Kris Bryant at 40, and Mike Olt at 63. We’ll see what happens when the season is over, but I’d be surprised if Alcantara is left off of too many other top 100s. I can envision scenarios where Pierce Johnson and C.J. Edwards get serious consideration, too, with Mike Olt maybe sliding off of most.
