Cubs promote trio of top prospects to Triple-A
A trio of the best Cubs’ prospects will be one step away from the majors.
Outfielder Kevin Alcántara and infielders Matt Shaw and James Triantos are all being promoted to Triple-A Iowa, a source confirmed. All three are Top 100 prospects in baseball, per MLB Pipeline.
Their promotions add to an Iowa squad rich with top prospects. The Cubs’ Top 6 prospects will be in Triple-A, although pitching prospect Cade Horton is currently rehabbing in Arizona. Alcántara, Shaw and Triantos join catcher Moisés Ballesteros and outfielder Owen Caissie with the I-Cubs.
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All three have been having solid offensive seasons, so their promotions come as no shock.
Alcántara, 22, is slashing .274/.341/.413 with 9 home runs, 37 RBI and a 124 weighted runs created plus. In his first full season in Double-A, Alcántara increased his walk rate from 7.6% at High-A to 9.1% this season. Alcántara was added to the 40-man roster ahead of last season.
Shaw, the Cubs’ 2023 1st-round pick, was lauded as an advanced hitter — and he’s done that since he was drafted. This season was no exception.
The 22-year-old had a .279/.373/.471 slash line, 14 home runs, 60 RBI and a 148 wRC+ with Tennessee. His walk rate spiked from around 4% in High-A and Double-A last season to 12% this year — and he coupled that with a low strikeout rate — 17.8%.
Triantos, 21, hit .298 with Tennessee, has 7 home runs, 38 stolen bases and a 128 wRC+. Triantos was the Cubs’ 2nd-round pick in 2021 and has had success at all minor-league levels.
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