Wiggins laying foundation to be Cubs' next breakout star

MESA, Ariz. -- Before their days as Oklahoma prep stars, early-round Draft picks out of college or teammates inside the Cubs’ clubhouse, Cade Horton and Jaxon Wiggins crossed paths as Little Leaguers. Horton remembers how you did not want to step into the box against Wiggins.

“Jaxon’s always been a guy that’s been so gifted athletically,” Horton said. “Electric arm. I remember in Little League, he was the hardest thrower. It was always an elite arm.”

Flash forward to Friday morning, when Horton and Wiggins were taking turns on the Field 6 mound at the Cubs’ spring complex, working through a two-inning live batting-practice session. Horton has already been flashing the kind of stuff that helped him finish as the runner-up in National League Rookie of the Year voting last year. Wiggins is now opening eyes, too.

In his second inning of simulated work on Friday, Wiggins faced, among others, Cubs star Pete Crow-Armstrong. The big righty started off with a breaking ball that snapped over the plate for a called strike. He then ripped a 96 mph fastball that Crow-Armstrong fouled off. The third and final pitch was a nasty 88 mph changeup that tailed away from Crow-Armstrong’s swing.

“That was a really nice pitch,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer remarked later.

The 24-year-old Wiggins is roughly six weeks younger than Horton, who climbed to the Majors last season and was one of baseball’s best arms in the second half. While Horton was solidifying Chicago’s staff, Wiggins was working his way up three Minor League levels, reaching Triple-A Iowa by the end of his breakout ‘25 campaign down on the farm.

Wiggins (the Cubs’ No. 2 prospect and No. 58 on Pipeline’s Top 100 list) now has a locker next to veteran lefty Matthew Boyd in the Cubs’ clubhouse for his first Major League Spring Training. He has been peppering the 35-year-old Boyd with questions and knows he can lean on the rest of the rotation group for advice, too. That obviously includes Horton, given their long history together and similar journeys within Chicago’s system.

Horton’s advice is straightforward.

“It’s all about being where your feet are,” Horton said. “That really helped me last year -- not getting so caught up in the future and what could happen. He’s going to be a big part of this team, and so just being where his feet are is the biggest thing, I think. That allowed me to go out there and play free and not really necessarily worry about things you can’t control.”

Wiggins sounds like he is already embracing that mentality.

“The only goal I have is just to do what I do -- try to be the best version of myself,” Wiggins said. “And when that opportunity comes, I want to take advantage of it.”

Overall last season, Wiggins spun a 2.19 ERA with 97 strikeouts and 36 walks in 78 innings, which were spread across 19 games (18 starts). The righty turned in a 1.71 ERA with High-A South Bend (six games), posted a 1.93 ERA for Double-A Knoxville (10 games) and a 4.66 ERA in a brief taste of Triple-A (three games).

Wiggins also took three-plus weeks off between June and July last summer due to what the pitcher said was right shoulder soreness. After his return on July 19, Wiggins did not exceed four innings or 60 pitches in any outings to prioritize health ahead of his important offseason and this year.

“It was time to take a step back. And I agreed with them,” Wiggins said.

Wiggins sat around 95-97 mph with his fastball in Friday’s live BP workout -- a great early sign for a pitcher who can reach triple-digits. The 6-foot-6 starter has a slider, curveball and changeup as part of his repertoire and saw improvement in both his strikeout rate (31% in ‘25 vs. 28% in ‘24) and walk rate (11.5% in ‘25 vs. 14.2% in ‘24) last year.

“He made a lot of progress last year,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “To a point where, another step forward, and he’s certainly in the conversation. … He’s just got to get a little more consistent, execute at a little higher level. Be competitive with a bigger percentage of pitches. There’s not necessarily pitch development, in terms of new pitches, that needs to happen. It’s just, harness his stuff.”

Given their history, Horton is confident Wiggins will deliver.

“I know what Jaxon’s about,” Horton said. “I know the work he puts in and how bad he wants it.”