This story was excerpted from Jordan Bastian’s Cubs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

CHICAGO -- Moises Ballesteros was playing video games on Monday night when Triple-A Iowa manager Marty Pevey gave him a call. The highly-touted catching prospect was informed that he was being promoted to the Cubs. Fittingly, Ballesteros was playing MLB The Show when he got the news. “My emotions,” Ballesteros

Moises Ballesteros is one of the most precocious and gifted hitting prospects in the game, yet he also presents something of a development dilemma.

It was an all-or-nothing type of day across Minor League Baseball. By which we mean, the top performers either tagged multiple homers at the plate or racked up big strikeout numbers from the mound. On Mother's Day, this Sunday's top prospect performers brought their "A" games:

NEW YORK -- Two pitches propelled Cade Horton to his status as the Cubs' top pitching prospect -- his 95-plus mph fastball and his wipeout slider. But the one pitch that told the story of his MLB debut wasn't either of those. It was a changeup. But not just any

NEW YORK -- Cade Horton has been performing lately like a pitcher with little left to prove with Triple-A Iowa. With the Major League staff now facing a sudden need, the Cubs will give their top pitching prospect his first test on the big league stage. Horton (MLB Pipeline’s No.

In the last 25 years, the Cubs have originally signed and developed just three homegrown pitchers who became All-Stars for them: Mark Prior, Jeff Samardzija and Justin Steele. The most recent of that trio, Steele, was drafted 11 years ago. Chicago famously ended its 108-year World Series title drought in

CHICAGO -- The consistent message from the Cubs’ decision-makers about top pitching prospect Cade Horton has been that the righty needs to establish a foundation of health and performance with Triple-A Iowa before a promotion to Chicago could be discussed. After Shota Imanaga exited his start Sunday due to a

This story was excerpted from Jordan Bastian’s Cubs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

Homering to all fields and stacking strikeouts was a theme in the Minor Leagues on Sunday. The Mariners' top-end farm system continued to produce elite offensive numbers while a Top 100 Cubs pitcher furthered his case for a callup this season. These prospect outings put a bow on another week

On a day in which homers were flying out of Minor League ballparks across the country, a few particularly stood out. Top 100 prospects Coby Mayo and Moisés Ballesteros slugged a pair of homers apiece, although even those were outdone by a Mets slugger who took three jogs around the

Youth was served in the Minors on Tuesday, which featured a pair of heavy-hitting outbursts from two teenagers who rank among the best in their respective organizations. But they weren't alone as a number of Top 100 prospects came through with notable performances to kick off another week of Minor

This story was excerpted from Jordan Bastian’s Cubs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

SAN DIEGO – Standing inside the visitors’ dugout at Petco Park on Monday afternoon, Matt Shaw expressed confidence that he was on the cusp of turning a corner. He believed he had identified a flaw in his offseason training and knew what it would take to get back to being

With the Minor League season opening this week, here's where the Cubs' Top 30 Prospects are projected to start:

1. Matt Shaw (MLB No. 18), INF -- Chicago (MLB)
2. Cade Horton (MLB No. 50), RHP -- Iowa (Triple-A)
3. Owen Caissie (MLB No. 52), OF -- Iowa (Triple-A) 4.

This story was excerpted from Jordan Bastian’s Cubs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

TOKYO -- Matt Shaw has been waiting his entire baseball life to hear his name announced on Opening Day. The Cubs rookie had to wait a little longer on Tuesday night, as the Tokyo Series pregame celebration energized the Tokyo Dome crowd. Lights flashed from the wrists of the fans

The last time a rookie claimed the Cubs’ third-base job, he was a first-round pick who reached Wrigley Field after just one full season in the Minors. Kris Bryant worked out pretty well, winning National League Rookie of the Year honors in 2015 followed by the NL MVP Award and

TOKYO -- Stepping foot inside the historic Tokyo Dome was a new experience for most of the Cubs’ players this weekend. That was not the case for Matt Shaw, who arrived at the famous ballpark already having witnessed the passionate fans who fill the place and spike the decibel level.

MESA, Ariz. -- The thing about jaguars is, you don’t want to see one when it’s hungry. So when Cubs legend Sammy Sosa spoke to the organization’s No. 6 prospect per MLB Pipeline -- and the No. 89 prospect overall -- the former slugger gave him some apt advice. “His

MESA, Ariz. -- An unfortunately-timed storm washed away the Cubs’ Spring Breakout showcase a year ago, leading to a group of prospects heading to the Sloan Park concourse to sign autographs for fans. This spring, the North Siders looked forward to showing off one of baseball’s top farm systems with

MESA, Ariz. – It’s a testament to where a farm system is when a Top 100-caliber hitter gets traded away and there’s still a desire to tout the bats. The Cubs traded Cam Smith to the Astros in the Kyle Tucker deal, but they still have seven players on the

MESA, Ariz. -- On Monday, Cubs infielder Matt Shaw packed for Tokyo … even though he did not know if he would be going.

This story was excerpted from Jordan Bastian’s Cubs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

MESA, Ariz. -- Gage Workman was monitoring the Rule 5 Draft in December and was excited to see that one of his friends, Liam Hicks, had been selected second overall by the Marlins. Workman was crafting a congratulatory text when another friend sent one his way, too. “I must’ve been