Cubs pitching neglect is impossible to ignore after latest Baseball America rankings

Entering the 2026 season, it was clear that questions surrounded the health of the Chicago Cubs farm system. Between graduations of Matt Shaw and Cade Horton, and the trade of Owen Caissie; suddenly, it was clear that the system had taken a step back.

Most national outlets had the Cubs' system among the worst in baseball at the start of the season, including Baseball America. In Baseball America's preseason ranking, the Cubs were at No. 22. If there was going to be improvement, beyond the draft, the Cubs needed a prospect or two to pop this season.

That's exactly what happened. Between Josiah Hartshorn, Kane Kepley, and Owen Ayers, there were clear jumps being made. That's apparent in Baseball America's update to their rankings, now placing the Cubs at No. 16.

If anything, it's reminder that the Cubs are rich when it comes to position player prospects. As the Cubs look for trade partners ahead of the trade deadline, they have a surplus of bats that they should feel comfortable trading from.

Baseball America has one final reminder for Cubs before 2026 MLB draft

Of course, the elephant in the room for the Cubs' system has been their lack of pitching. The Cubs have very few pitching prospects who projected as starting pitchers, and their best one, Jaxon Wiggins, has had injury concerns upon being draft. No surprise, starting pitching is deemed the weakness of the Cubs system by Baseball America.

The simplest way for the Cubs to address that weakness is by prioritizing pitching in the 2026 MLB draft. Along those lines, it sounds like the Cubs are aware of that fact. The success rate of taking a college bat is certainly higher than taking pitcher. What that ignores is how many bites at the apple are the Cubs taking.

When it comes to the Cubs taking pitching, they aren't taking many bites.

That needs to change. Especially since the Cubs have proven that under Jed Hoyer, the front office is going to be allergic to spending on velocity. Velocity is the trend of a successful pitching staff.

But to take it a step further, the Cubs shouldn't be looking to save a penny during the draft. Between Wiggins and Cade Horton, the organization hasn't shied away from selecting pitchers with a checkered injury history. There's certainly an upside play that could work for the Cubs, but time is proving that to be the less likely outcome.

Overall, the Cubs system is once again headed in the right direction. If they find success in this weekend's draft, they could once again be approaching top-10 status.

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