Cody Bellinger signing boxes in a raft of Cubs outfield prospects
Cody Bellinger has decided to return to the Cubs in 2025, blocking the major league path for several of the team's leading prospects.
Chicago Cubs fans have mixed feelings about Cody Bellinger’s decision to play for their team in 2025, though there’s one group that is wallowing in dismay at the news.
That group is the small army of Cubs outfield prospects who—until Bellinger’s announcement—were lined up to compete for his job next spring. Bellinger’s opt-in goes a long way toward slamming the playing time door on those prospects’ fingers, at least on Chicago’s North Side.
The irony of the Bellinger decision is that it came at a time when the Cubs were in a superb position to replace their star slugger internally while simultaneously freeing up payroll to use in the chase for their various other needs: at third base, in the rotation, and a catcher to pair with Miguel Amaya.
At least three players assessed as being major league-ready will be blocked by the Bellinger move. The Cubs are now committed to him in right field, ahey have Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki signed through 2026 to play left field and, presumably, DH, respectively. Plus, they have all-world defender Pete Crow-Armstrong in center field. Hence, there's not much room for another mouth to feed.
Here’s the list of understudies:
1. Blocked outfield prospects
Alexander Canario, a 24-year-old September call up who hit .280 with a .797 OPS in 15 games. At Triple-A Iowa, he slugged .514.
Owen Caissie, the team’s No. 2 prospect and No. 34 overall. Cassie, 22, hit .278 with an .847 OPS in 127 games at Iowa.
Kevin Alcantara, 22, the team’s No. 6 prospect and No. 67 in MLB. At 6-6 and 188 pounds, Alcantara batted .278 with a .781 OPS for Iowa.
Caissie and Alcantara are among eight Cubs ranked among the game’s top 100 prospects as of the conclusion of 2024, a list Canario appeared on in the past before dealing with injuries over the last several seasons. However, with Bellinger signed on for at least 2025, their best hopes for major league playing time next season appear to be elsewhere.
The Cubs certainly have holes that could be filled by the trade of an outfield prospect or two. There could be matches with a number of trade partners, although given the depth of the Cubs system, several of those matches could create blockages elsewhere.
The Baltimore Orioles have catcher Samuel Basallo at Triple A ready to go. Basallo is Baltimore’s No. 2 prospect and No. 13 overall, but he is blocked behind Adley Rutschman, a 26 year old All-Star.
A swap of Canario and/or Caissie and/or Alcantara for Basallo might provide the Cubs with a worthy complement to Amaya behind the plate, though the team could opt to look for a veteran to help anchor the pitching staff.
Of course, even a swap like that might merely relocate the blockage issue. Chicago’s No. 4 prospect is Moises Ballesteros, who at age 20 is already being judged as big league ready. Ballesteros hit .281 in 68 games at Iowa last season.
2. Cubs' top 100 prospects
No. 22 Matt Shaw, infielder
No. 34 Owen Caissie, outfielder
No. 42 Cade Horton, starting pitcher
No. 44 Moises Ballesteros, catcher
No. 55 James Triantos, infielder
No. 67 Kevin Alcantara, outfielder
No. 73, Cam Smith, third baseman
No. 100 Jefferson Rojas, shortstop
The Cubs also need pitching, having already cut ties with Kyle Hendricks and Drew Smyly. The Pittsburgh Pirates, who badly need outfield production, have right-hander Bubba Chandler, MLB’s No. 15 prospect, ready at Triple A. Pittsburgh’s No.1 prospect, Chandler was 10-7 with a 3.08 ERA at two minor league stops in 2024.
But acquiring Chandler creates an obstacle for Cade Horton, Chicago’s top draft pick two years ago and currently rated as the No. 8 right-handed pitching prospect in the game. Lightly used due to injury in 2024, Horton was 2-1 in 34 innings of work. But he is expected to be healthy for the start of spring training, and at 23, will have a chance to win the fifth starter job at the backend of the rotation.
Here’s the bottom line: with the Bellinger opt-in, President Jed Hoyer and GM Carter Hawkins have a major task ahead of them this winter sorting through their various options and determining which ones have big league potential in 2025, either in Chicago or elsewhere.
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