2025 Draft picks key to Cubs restocking prospect pool

MESA, Ariz. -- The Cubs system is going through a transition right now. Their stockpile of Top 100 Prospects has dwindled from seven a year ago to two: catcher Moisés Ballesteros and right-hander Jaxon Wiggins, who both should graduate to the Majors this season. Chicago also has slipped from No. 8 to No. 23 in MLB Pipeline's organizational talent rankings during the last 12 months, the biggest drop in baseball.

That's not to say the Cubs are bereft of prospects. Their 2025 Draft could go a long ways toward restocking their system, especially with its outfielders. By the end of this season, Ethan Conrad (first round) could rank as their best overall prospect, Kane Kepley (second) as their best hitting prospect and Josiah Hartshorn (sixth) as their best power prospect.

Conrad starred at Marist and in the Cape Cod League in 2024 before transferring to Wake Forest, where he dislocated his left shoulder and tore his labrum diving for a fly ball, requiring season-ending surgery last March. The injury didn't diminish his reputation as one of the best all-around players in the 2025 college or dissuade Chicago from selecting him 17th overall. He's an athletic 6-foot-2, 220-pounder with the upside of solid tools across the board and the possibility of sticking in center field.

"Ethan is one of our better multi-tooled guys," director of player development Jason Kanzler said. "He has all the skills that are really hard to teach. A great outcome over the coming couple of years is that he learns to pull the ball in the air a little bit more. There's still some college slap-the-ball-the-other-way in there, and it served him well, but he can learn to maximize what he has and impact the ball more than he has."

After transferring from Liberty to North Carolina, Kepley led the Atlantic Coast Conference in strikeout rate (seven percent) and finished fourth in NCAA Division I with 45 steals last spring. An on-base machine who makes quality swing decisions, he has the plus speed to create havoc on the bases and chase down balls in center field. He had no problem adapting to pro ball last summer, slashing .299/.481/.433 with 25 walks and 16 steals in 28 games in Single-A.

"Kane is a technician in the box," Kanzler said. "He has advanced strike-zone management, advanced bat-to-ball skills, advanced outfield defense, advanced baserunning. He's also a baseball rat who eats, sleeps and breathes baseball."

A California prep product, Hartshorn shared the title at the All-Star High School Home Run Derby at Globe Lite Field in 2024. Signed to a sixth round-record $2 million bonus, he’ll need more time to develop than Conrad or Kepley but could have a higher ceiling than both.

"Josiah might be the most impressively tooled-up young position player here," Kanzler said. "He hits the hell out of the ball, he throws the hell out of the ball. He'll get a chance to play center field. What makes him different is he has a much more advanced understanding of everything for a 19-year-old. He thinks about game-planning and pitch shapes and all that stuff like a seasoned Double-A or Triple-A player."

Camp standout: Pedro Ramirez

Ballesteros seems to have secured the Cubs' DH job by batting .355/.394/.613 in big league camp, though that was expected because he has hit everywhere he ever has played. Pedro Ramirez has opened more eyes with his .357/.429/.607 performance.

Both Ballesteros and Ramirez signed out of the same Venezuelan training program in 2021, though the former's $1.2 million bonus dwarfed the latter's $75,000. A switch-hitter, Ramirez never has finished worse than ninth in a league batting race in five pro seasons despite being younger than most of his competition. He posted a 122 wRC+ as a 21-year-old in Double-A last year while also displaying solid speed and getting the job done at third and second base.

"Pedro's underlying peripherals are very aggressive for his league and his age," Kanzler said. "He won a Minor League Gold Glove last year, too. You can make the argument that he's the best pure hitter in the system if you don't count Ballesteros."

Breakout potential: Juan Cabada

The Cubs gave seven-figure bonuses to three Dominican infielders in 2025, and Juan Cabada made the best initial impression of that group after signing for $1.5 million. He hit .287/.429/.426 with 20 steals in 42 games in the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League, showing solid bat-to-ball skills, speed and arm strength.

"Juan has a really advanced bat for his age," Kanzler said. "His maturity is impressive, too. He comes from a military family, which manifests how he goes about his business. He's probably a second baseman or third baseman, but we're going to play him everywhere."

Bounceback candidate: Kade Snell

Another outfielder drafted last July (fifth round) by the Chicago, Snell didn't become a full-time position player until he was a fifth-year senior at Alabama last spring. As a Southeastern Conference performer with intriguing data and no remaining college eligibility, he was one of the most coveted discount hitters in the 2025 Draft. His under-the-hood numbers looked better than his .167/.268/.219 batting line during his 27-game pro debut in High-A.

"I think Kade will have a monster year," Kanzler said. "He was pulling the ball on the ground a lot, and that's an out in pro ball. He's much better now, hitting it in the air more, hitting it to the middle of the field. It's special underlying metrics. It's a gritty, blue-collar makeup that's going to push his ceiling higher."

Draft sleeper: Pierce Coppola

One of the top high school lefty pitching prospects in the 2021 Draft, Pierce Coppola pitched just 49 1/3 innings in four college seasons at Florida because of back and shoulder injuries. He posted a 5.66 ERA but also struck out 38 percent of the batters he faced. His 6-foot-8 frame, flashes of a mid-90s fastball and unusual delivery metrics led the Cubs to spend a seventh-round pick on him last July, after which he fanned 14 in eight Single-A innings.

"When Pierce is healthy, he throws the hell out of the ball," Kanzler said. "It's a unique delivery and a very big body and an uncomfortable at-bat. He can run it up to 98, and there's a bit of funk and crossfire."