What to expect from Cubs No. 2 prospect Ramírez in big leagues

Pedro Ramírez's breakout season just keeps getting better and better. After tearing up Triple-A and needing just 37 games to set a new career high for home runs, he got called to the big leagues for the first time today.

After the Cubs placed Matt Shaw on the 10-day injured list this morning with tightness in his back, they summoned the 22-year-old Ramírez from Iowa, where he was slashing .312/.395/.547 with nine homers in 43 games. He ranks second in the International League in steals (19), third in total bases (93) and RBIs (40) and fourth in extra-base hits (21) and hits (53).

Ranked No. 85 on MLB Pipeline's Top 100 Prospects list, Ramírez becomes the second advanced hitter signed out of Alvaro Diaz's Venezuelan training program in 2021 on Chicago's big league roster. He joins Moisés Ballesteros, who landed a $1.2 million bonus while Ramírez turned pro for $75,000.

Coming into this season, Ramírez had proven his bat-to-ball skills by never finishing worse than ninth in a league batting race in his five years as pro despite being younger than most of his competition. He looked more comfortable and showed more consistent arm strength at third base in 2025, improving to the point where he won a Minor League Gold Glove. But his power is a newfound development.

Ramírez began showing an improved ability to drive balls in the air during Spring Training and hasn't let up. His exit velocities have averaged 90.8 mph and topped out at 110.8 in Triple-A, which are both roughly average by 2026 MLB standards, though his average launch angle of 10.4 degrees would fit in the 23rd percentile. A switch-hitter, he makes more contact from the right side but generates most of his pop from the left.

Ramírez projects to hit for high batting averages with 15-20 homers per season, and he manages the strike zone well even if his talent for making contact so easily cuts into his walk totals a bit. He's a solid runner who stole a career-best 28 bases last season and has enough quickness to also play second base, where he spent the majority of his first three pro seasons.

The question is how Ramírez will fit into the Cubs' lineup. For now, he's a depth piece replacing Shaw, another gifted young hitter and infielder who has started games at five different positions this spring in order to find him at-bats.

Chicago's starters at Ramírez's two positions are Alex Bregman, who's signed through 2030, and Nico Hoerner, who's under contract through 2032. Ballesteros, who has a higher offensive ceiling than Ramírez, is the club's primary DH.

Ramírez may prove most valuable to the Cubs as trade bait, and he'd be a primary target for other teams if Chicago looks to upgrade an injury-ravaged pitching staff. He has shored up the weaknesses in his game and should become a solid regular at third or second base if given the opportunity.