The Chicago Cubs' lack of star power on full display in MLB top 100 list

MLB Network has been slowly revealing its list of top 100 players over the past few weeks, and the ranking puts the Chicago Cubs' lack of high-end talent on full display.

Although the Cubs currently have three players on the list, all of them are toward the latter half. Even if the Cubs re-signed 2023 comeback player of the year Cody Bellinger, they would still lack a top 50 player according to the list.

Below is the list of Chicago Cubs represented on the top 100 list:

Cody Bellinger - 51

Justin Steele - 64

Dansby Swanson - 67

Seiya Suzuki - 84

The Cubs are certainly trending in the right direction because two years ago, none of the above players would be there. While Swanson and Bellinger have contributed at a relatively high level for years at this point, 2023 was their first year as Cubs. Justin Steele is the only home-grown guy on the list and he very recently became an All-Star caliber player while Seiya Suzuki's progression also didn't accelerate until the latter half of 2023.

However, the Cubs should definitely make re-signing Bellinger the top priority just to get some of that star power back on the team. There's a good chance he regresses from the MVP-type year he had in 2023, but he resurrected his career in Chicago and everyone from the fans, teammates, and Bellinger himself seems to want him back in a Cubs uniform. He's a guy with an extremely high ceiling that has the potential to put up numbers the Cubs haven't seen in years, most notably in the power department.

There's also a good chance that some in-house players will crack this list in the future. Christopher Morel would have likely eclipsed 30 home runs last season had he not begun the year in Triple-A. After making adjustments and putting another year of major league experience under his belt, we could be poised for a big breakout year from the 24-year-old.

On the pitching side, top pitching prospect Cade Horton has a solid chance of making his MLB debut this summer. If Horton's minor league performance so far ( 2.65 ERA in 88.1 IP) translates to the majors, the Cubs could have an elite home-grown starter on their hands.

Admittedly, these rankings should always be taken with a grain of salt, and players regularly outperform or fall short of their pre-season projections. But the front half of this list is chock full of players you would like to see on your team and the Cubs simply don't. For reference, the Cubs had nine players on this list going into the 2017 season, with four of them (Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Jon Lester, and Jake Arrieta) all within the top 30.

It's not easy to acquire or develop these types of players, but there have certainly been opportunities over the years. Heavy hitters along the lines of Marcus Semien, Corey Seager, and Nick Castellanos have all been available in recent offseasons. And there will continue to be opportunities in the future with sluggers like Pete Alonso, Alex Bregman, and Juan Soto all hitting free agency after 2024.

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