This underrated Cubs pitching prospect will climb prospect rankings rapidly

Sixth-round, under-slot picks tend not to emerge as "elite" prospects in their first full professional year, but Ryan Gallagher is trying his hardest to change that narrative.

Fresh off one of the most dominant months in the minor leagues in recent years, the right-handed starting pitcher is emerging as a promotion candidate to Double-A Knoxville less than a year after being drafted.

Ryan Gallagher emerging as a top arm in Cubs farm system

In case you haven't been scouring the box scores of South Bend Cubs games recently, allow me to enlighten you about what Gallagher has been up to since May started.

In five starts last month, the 22-year-old racked up a 2.33 ERA in 27.0 innings, to go along with a 38.5% strikeout rate, 8.7% walk rate, and .179 opponent average. That's downright dominant, and in his final four starts of the month, he allowed just five runs in 24 1/3 innings.

His fastball velocity has jumped from a high-80s offering in college to the mid-90s in the professional ranks, a considerable leap that is made all the more impressive when you consider that he hasn't lost a lick of the brilliant control that most scouts pegged as his "carrying tool".

Through eight starts in South Bend, Gallagher has a 2.92 ERA in 37 innings, which is backed up by his 1.081 WHIP and .565 opponent OPS. He's also allowing a reasonable .299 BABIP, suggesting his results are not the product of luck or circumstance — he's earning the outs he's getting.

Back in 2023, Cade Horton made just 11 total starts in South Bend before getting called up to Double-A, though he did make four starts in Myrtle Beach (Single-A) before dominating the opposition in High-A.

The Cubs will surely want Gallagher to get some more run in the lower levels before tossing him against better competition, but this is an arm that had a 2.22 ERA in 89 innings at UC Santa Barbra last year. He's no stranger to leading a pitching staff.

With Horton on the precipice of graduating from prospect status, Brandon Birdsell and Jaxson Wiggins will emerge as the two best pitching prospects in the Cubs' system when midseason rankings come out.

Don't be surprised if Gallagher is the first pitcher behind them on those lists.