The Chicago Cubs have done their part in the grand reveal of their 2026 Spring Breakout Pool. Chicago has had players like NL Rookie of the Year candidate Cade Horton and Pete Crow-Armstrong on this squad in the past.

The purpose of the Spring Breakout Series is to highlight each team’s top prospect talents by giving them another platform to prove themselves to the big league ball club. Think about it like the All-Star Futures Game, but with a couple of modifications.

The Cubs joined the rest of Major League Baseball in submitting a preliminary list of 40 players who could appear on their breakout roster:

PITCHERS (15)
Brandon Birdsell, RHP, No. 17
Brooks Caple, RHP, NR
Jostin Florentino, RHP, No. 18
Grant Kipp, RHP, No. 29
Jackson Kirkpatrick, RHP, NR
Riley Martin, LHP, No. 28
Luis Martinez-Gomez, RHP, No. 24
Nazier Mulé, RHP, NR
Dominick Reid, RHP, No. 16
Erian Rodriguez, RHP, No. 23
Yenrri Rojas, RHP, NR
Will Sanders, RHP, NR
JP Wheat, RHP, NR
Jaxon Wiggins, RHP, No. 2/MLB No. 58
Kaleb Wing, RHP, No. 13

CATCHERS (4)
Ariel Armas, C, No. 20
Owen Ayers, C, No. 11
Moisés Ballesteros, C, No. 1/MLB No. 55
Justin Stransky, C, NR

INFIELDERS (11)
Edgar Alvarez, 1B, NR
Juan Cabada, 2B/OF, No. 12
Angel Cepeda, INF, No. 25
Fernando Cruz, SS/2B, No. 30
Jonathon Long, 1B, No. 7
Cole Mathis, 1B/3B, No. 15
Pedro Ramirez, 3B/2B, No. 9
Jefferson Rojas, SS/2B, No. 5
Ty Southisene, 2B, No. 26
Juan Tomas, SS, No. 14
James Triantos, 2B/OF, No. 10

OUTFIELDERS (10)
Derik Alcantara, OF, NR
Kevin Alcántara, OF, No. 4
Brett Bateman, OF, No. 21
Ethan Conrad, OF, No. 3
Josiah Hartshorn, OF, No. 8
Kane Kepley, OF, No. 6
Alexey Lumpuy, OF, NR
Christian Olivo, OF, NR
Kade Snell, OF, No. 27
Carter Trice, OF, NR

With the roster being cut down in a couple of weeks and the regular season behind just around the corner, here are four notable players who could potentially make some noise in the Spring Breakout contest.

Prospects To Watch: Jaxon Wiggins

Wiggins is the Cubs’ shiny sports car at the moment. With Cade Horton graduating from prospect status last year, the former Arkansas Razorback has taken the reins as the team’s top pitching prospect. 

After an up-and-down first year in professional baseball in 2024 where Wiggins searched for his command at times, the hard-throwing righty turned up the temperature and found himself in Triple-A by the end of last season. 

Overall, his 70-grade fastball, wicked upper-80s slider and .176 career opponent batting average stand out as top metrics indicating his MLB debut could be just around the corner.

Prospects To Watch: Jefferson Rojas

Few players have stolen center stage like Rojas has for the Cubs in the last couple of weeks.

Rojas has gone on his own Spring Breakout tour, logging a .318 batting average and a team-best 16 total bases across eight exhibition contests for the Cubs thus far. The organization’s No. 5 prospect topped out in Double-A Knoxville to conclude his 2025 campaign, but he took his lumps, failing to hit a home run and hitting .164 across 39 contests.

The rising middle infielder is starting 2026 with confidence; let’s see if the performance can translate on the big stage come March 21.

Prospects To Watch: Ethan Conrad 

As the Cubs’ first-round pick in 2025, all eyes will be watching if Conrad gets his first competitive at-bats with some of Chicago’s brightest young stars. The former Wake Forest Demon Deacon boasts five-tool upside, with all of his tools grading at 50 or higher.

At 6-foot-2, 220 pounds, Conrad packs a punch with plus speed once he gets his gears turning. As an outfielder, there’s added appeal knowing that Seiya Suzuki and Ian Happ are on contract years and that the organization’s former top prospect, Owen Caissie, packed his backs for Miami in the Edward Cabrera trade.

The 21-year-old has a long way to go before getting a call to the bigs, but it’s hard not to get excited knowing the North Siders have the NCAA triples leader (13) from just a couple of seasons ago.

Prospects To Watch: Moises Ballesteros

Last but certainly not least, we have a top-100 prospect who has already made his major-league debut.

Ballesteros looked calm, cool and collected when he joined the North Siders down the stretch last year. The backstop made himself irresistible in Triple-A Iowa, hitting .316 with a superb .858 OPS across 114 games before carrying his momentum to Wrigley Field. 

Ballesteros’ OPS spiked to .868 in the majors, and he enjoyed two round-trippers with 11 runs batted in across 20 big-league contests. This showcase could be another opportunity to highlight the top prospect in the Cubs’ farm system.

The Matchup

The Cubs host the San Diego Padres’ Spring Breakout roster at Sloan Park on March 21. First pitch for the NL Wild Card rematch is set for 8:05 PM CT.