Cubs 2025 first rounder skyrockets in MLB Pipeline's latest prospect rankings

Despite 2025 first-round pick Ethan Conrad undergoing shoulder surgery before he was taken by the Chicago Cubs, Jed Hoyer was confident in the selection. When healthy, Hoyer and Co. believed that Conrad could quickly ascend to the top of the team's prospect rankings, and MLB Pipeline just provided confirmation of that.

MLB Pipeline has updated its list of the Cubs' top prospects ahead of Opening Day, and Moises Ballesteros gets the top spot. Considering the abbreviated run Ballesteros had at the end of the 2025 season, he's still considered a prospect, but that likely will change before the All-Star.

Ballesteros is expected to be the Cubs' primary designated hitter in 2026, and that could see him remove his prospect label early in the campaign.

Looking beyond Ballesteros, as expected, Jaxon Wiggins is right behind at No. 2, and is the best pitching prospect in the Cubs' system. But after Wiggins, Conrad appears as the third-best prospect in the Cubs' organization.

Ethan Conrad could validate the Cubs' 2025 draft approach with a healthy season.

Conrad's quick rise near the top of the Cubs' farm system speaks to the change that is taking place at the minor-league level. Matt Shaw and Cade Horton have graduated to the major league level, and Owen Caissie was traded to the Miami Marlins during the offseason. The prospect shine on Kevin Alcantara is starting to wear off, and that has pushed Chicago's group of prospects toward the bottom of baseball when it comes to talent.

The silver lining is that with a full season from the 2025 draft class, the Cubs' farm system is headed back in the right direction. Outfielders Kane Kepley and Josiah Hartshorn are also among the Cubs' top 10 prospects, according to MLB Pipeline, and each was a part of last season's draft.

Keep an eye on infielder Jefferson Rojas as well. The Cubs have been eager to give up on international prospects too quickly in recent years, and Rojas appears to be the exception. Signed with the Cubs in 2022, he enters 2026 at the No. 5 prospect in the Cubs' system.

Rojas is also in camp with the Cubs this year and has been impressive through the early run of spring training games. He has 6 hits in his first 21 plate appearances, and could quickly ascend to the top of the team's prospect rankings once Ballesteros is removed.