The Chicago Cubs are, maybe, not as secure in the starting pitching department as many thought they would be this winter.
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The names are there and there’s still an overflow of arms for the rotation, but just about every proposed starter has looked vulnerable this spring and depth has suddenly become a concern. Matthew Boyd, Jameson Taillon, Edward Cabrera, and Shota Imanaga have been beaten up in Cactus League play and that makes one wonder about backups.
Colin Rea, Ben Brown, and Javier Assad will be around, but none project as high-end starters over the long haul.
But could the Cubs have another Cade Horton surprise this season?
The next Cade Horton surprise?
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Last year, top pitching prospect Horton came up from Triple-A in May, after Imanaga’s injury, and ended up blowing people away with a dominant post-All-Star break run.
This year, current top pitching prospect Jaxon Wiggins is being predicted by some to be the surprise pitching star of the season.
The 24-year-old Wiggins came to spring training this year as a non-roster invitee and turned some heads, despite getting touched up a bit in his limited play.
“There’s a lot of good signs with Jaxon, there are a lot of good things happening,” manager Craig Counsell told media. “The finishing touches can happen really fast is how I would describe it. But they can also take a while. That’s Jaxon’s job right now, just make himself a little bit more complete pitcher. It’s certainly very close.”
Big league expectations for Wiggins
Michael Brauner of Sports Illustrated fully anticipates the 6-foot-6 Wiggins getting the major league call-up at some point this season:
“He was never going to break camp with the team, but he certainly could be on a similar trajectory as Cade Horton last year, starting the season in Iowa.
Making an impact on the coaching staff, Wiggins established himself as a name to watch and once Ballesteros officially graduates he will become the top prospect in the organization. Jed Hoyer has spoken often about how much pitching depth is needed, and the 24-year-old is the next one up.
It would be a significant surprise to not see Wiggins’ big league debut in 2026.”
Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic echoes the enthusiasm, although he holds back in predicting a likely big league debut in 2026 for the pitcher he describes as having “one of the best fastballs in the minors.”
Per Sharma:
“The fastball is in the upper 90s and has the type of vertical rise that is impossible to ignore. He also has a strong curveball, a quickly developing changeup and a slider. So what are the next steps?
…He has a walk rate well above 10 percent in each of his pro seasons. That has to change. That he walked just 5.9 percent of batters this spring was something that was taken note of. Now bring that into the season.”
Wiggins is, arguably, the last homegrown high-end starting pitching prospect in the Cubs farm system, at least for now. Fast-tracking his development and bringing him up to the majors this coming season will probably be a last resort for the Cubs– and a sign that the rotation is in deep distress.
Chicago Cubs rank inside top 5 in The Athletic’s preseason rankings
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