Matt Shaw Tops MLB Pipeline’s Revamped Top 30 Prospects List
MLB Pipeline just released its updated list of the top 30 Cubs prospects and there are some big changes after the top six or so. There was also a coup at the highest reaches as Matt Shaw overtook Cade Horton to grab the No. 1 spot. Not that it really matters much since those first half-dozen are all in Triple-A right now — even though Horton is likely done for the season — and should be in Chicago by next summer.
Top draft pick Cam Smith enters the rankings at No. 8 and second pick Cole Mathis debuts at No. 12, with righty Jaxon Wiggins falling between them at the 10 spot. A pair of 17-year-olds are noted as well, with Fernando Cruz coming in at No. 9 after signing as an international free agent in January and Ronny Cruz ranked 16th after being selected in the third round of the draft.
Other recent IFAs and draft picks include Derniche Valdez (14) and Ty Southisene (21), the latter of whom worked with Mike Bryant during his youth baseball days in the Las Vegas area. Also of note, Brennen Davis is hanging on at No. 27 even after yet another back injury has sidelined him indefinitely.
There are six teenagers in the top 30, one fewer than the number of 24-year-olds. Interestingly enough, at least to me, catcher Pablo Aliendo is the only 23-year-old named here. But what’s even more interesting is that all of the Cubs’ top six prospects are ranked among the top 74 overall. Between Shaw (25), Horton (31), Owen Caissie (36), Moises Ballesteros (44), and Kevin Alcántara (74), the Cubs are still clearly among the top farm systems in the game.
That could change quickly over the next year as they transition from having those players in the minors to either promoting them or trading them for proven impact talent. Horton and Shaw are as close to untouchable as you can get, but I’d wager the front office is more than willing to listen when it comes to the other four and beyond. According to one report, Triantos and one other either Caissie or Alcántara were being dangled in trade offers for Angels catcher Logan O’Hoppe.
This winter represents an inflection point for the organization, and perhaps Jed Hoyer if he’s indeed still around to make the decisions. The Cubs are out of excuses for not competing after this season, but they’re currently in a weird limbo that sees them without either long-term superstars or obvious elite prospects. How that is addressed between now and next February will determine whether and how soon this team gets back to beating the Brewers.