Cubs grab a high-upside arm, bolster organizational depth in latest MLB mock draft

The Chicago Cubs love a player coming off an injury falling in the MLB Draft - and a new FanSided mock has Jed Hoyer zeroing in on someone who perfectly fits that description in college right-hander Cameron Flukey.

Flukey is coming off an injury-shortened season with Coastal Carolina, as a rib injury limited him to just seven games. He entered 2026 as Baseball America's Preseason College Pitcher of the Year, and he's in the news this week after entering the transfer portal - but most expect him to follow his former coach to South Carolina if his stock plummets and he stays in the college ranks.

Had he stayed healthy and built upon his breakout showing as a sophomore, we could be looking at a consensus top-10 pick. In 2025, Flukey stacked 118 punchouts to just 24 walks across 101 2/3 innings of work, pitching to an impressive 3.19 ERA and helping lead the program to an appearance at the College World Series.

Cubs know all too well that injuries can present a problem down the road

Instead, a stress fracture curtailed his junior season and has his draft stock sitting slightly lower in the water than it was this spring. That being said, the upside with his arsenal could still see a team snag him before the Cubs make their first pick at #23. MLB Pipeline, for example, has the 21-year-old as its 11th-ranked prospect in this year's draft class - so you can see why Hoyer would be elated to land him with his first-round pick.

He's got a mid-to-upper 90s fastball and pairs it with a plummeting curve, as well as a slider and change-up. That sort of upside is obviously intriguing for an organization like the Cubs, in dire need of more high-ceiling pitching prospects. Obviously, any sort of injury history is concerning, but there might be more cause for hope here given it wasn't a shoulder or elbow issue.

In my eyes, whether it's Flukey or another college arm, there's only one correct move for Hoyer and the Cubs with their first-round pick. This team needs pitching and the time is now to start (re?)building a steady pipeline to Wrigley that will last for years to come.

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