In the middle of the previous decade, the Cubs assembled one of the most impressive collections of position prospects, ranking as baseball's best farm system in 2015 before ending their 108-year World Series championship drought the following season. Their system currently is the strongest it has been since then and much more balanced this time around with pitching depth.

Six of Chicago's 12 best prospects arrived via trade, including four members of MLB Pipeline's Top 100: outfielders Pete Crow-Armstrong, Owen Caissie and Kevin Alcántara, and big league-ready corner infielder Michael Busch. Caissie came from the Padres in the Yu Darvish deal in 2020; Alcántara from the Yankees in the Anthony Rizzo package in 2021; Crow-Armstrong from the Mets for Javier Báez and Trevor Williams in 2021; and Michael Busch from the Dodgers for a pair of highly regarded prospects in January.

The Cubs also are doing well in the Draft and on the international market. Recent first-rounders Jordan Wicks (2021), Cade Horton (2022) and Matt Shaw (2023) all could be ensconced at Wrigley Field by midsummer. Catcher Moises Ballesteros and shortstops Jefferson Rojas and Fernando Cruz will need more time to develop but all could turn into quality regulars.

• MLB Pipeline | Top 100 prospects | Prospect video

Here’s a look at the Cubs' top prospects:
1. Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF (MLB No. 16)
2. Cade Horton, RHP (MLB No. 26)
3. Owen Caissie, OF (MLB No. 47)
4. Michael Busch, INF (MLB No. 51)
5. Matt Shaw, SS/2B (MLB No. 54)
Complete Top 30 list »

Biggest jump/fall

Here are the players whose ranks changed the most from the 2023 preseason list to the 2024 preseason list:

Jump: Jefferson Rojas, SS (2023: NR | 2024: 10)
An advanced hitter promoted to Single-A at age 18 in June, he was one of three regulars that young in the Carolina League and held his own by slashing .268/.345/.404.

Fall: Brennen Davis, OF (2023: 3 | 2024: NR)
Once the organization's top prospects and one of the best in the game, he has batted .189 in Triple-A the last two seasons while dealing with an operation to correct a nest of blood vessels pushing against a nerve in his back (2022) and core muscle surgery (2023).

Top 30s
NLE: ATL | MIA | NYM | PHI | WSH
ALE: BAL | BOS | NYY | TB | TOR
NLC: CIN | CHC | MIL | PIT | STL
ALC: CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIN
NLW: AZ | COL | LAD | SD | SF
ALW: HOU | LAA | OAK | SEA | TEX

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Best tools

Players are graded on a 20-80 scouting scale for future tools – 20-30 is well below average, 40 is below average, 50 is average, 60 is above average and 70-80 is well above average. Players in parentheses have the same grade.

Hit: 60 -- James Triantos
Power: 65 -- Owen Caissie
Run: 70 -- Pete Crow-Armstrong
Arm: 60 -- Alexander Canario (Pablo Aliendo, Owen Caissie, Jefferson Rojas, Luis Vazquez)
Defense: 80 -- Pete Crow-Armstrong
Fastball: 70 -- Luke Little
Curveball: 60 -- Ben Brown
Slider: 70 -- Cade Horton
Changeup: 65 -- Jordan Wicks
Control: 55 -- Cade Horton

How they were built
Draft: 14 | International: 8 | Trade: 6 | NDFA: 1 | Free Agent: 1

Breakdown by ETA
2024: 11 | 2025: 9 | 26: 6 | 2027: 2 | 2028: 1 | 2029: 1

Breakdown by position
C: 2 | 1B: 2 | 2B: 2 | 3B: 2 | SS: 8 | OF: 4 | RHP: 7 | LHP: 3