Article: The Top 20 Chicago Cubs Player Assets of 2024: Part 1 (16-20)

[Seth Stohs]

Quick Question: How would you rank the top 20 most valuable player assets in the Chicago Cubs organization? How would you define a player’s value? It has to be more than just past production on the field, but which players are most important to the short-term and long-term future of the ball club? 

Read on for the first installment, in which we'll explain the exercise and profile my choices for numbers 16 through 20.

Image courtesy of Mark J Rebilas, USA Today (photo of Kevin Alcantara), Wendell Cruz, USA Today (photo of Kyle Hendricks), David Banks, USA Today (photo of Canario)

One of my favorite baseball-writing series at Twins Daily that I have enjoyed the last half-dozen years is Nick Nelson’s annual Top 20 Minnesota Twins Player Assets of the Year. Recently, he completed the four-part 2024 series. I thought bringing that series to North Side Baseball would be fun. Over the coming days, I’ll share my thoughts on the Top 20 Chicago Cubs assets, and I welcome your feedback and thoughts on each list. 

Since I’m stealing the series idea from Nick, I think it is only fair to use his words to define how the list is created. How do you measure a “player asset,” and how should players be ranked? This isn’t a prospect ranking. This isn’t a ranking of the best players. This list combines minor leaguers and big leaguers. How I answer those questions may (or may not) be different than how you answer those questions, and therefore, we could have a lot of discussion.

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The idea of this exercise is to take stock of the organization's talent through the scope of team-building. The goal is to answer this question: Which current players in the organization are most indispensable to fulfilling the vision of building a champion?

We account for age, contract, controllability, upside, etc. It's not strictly a ranking of trade value because that would be more team-agnostic, whereas this list aims to capture a very Twins-specific point of view. As such, players in areas of scarcity (i.e., pitching) get elevated, while those in areas of abundance (i.e., lefty-swinging corner guys) get downgraded a bit.

I always find compiling this list to be an exciting offseason pastime that brings to the surface unique conversations about Twins players, how we value them, and where the system's strengths and weaknesses lie. 

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As I worked on creating this list, I considered many of the same factors like those mentioned above - age, team control, contract status, and more. This is an intriguing list because there is such a variety. There is a variety of player types and roles. How do you rank a Top 100 pitching prospect who got a cup of coffee compared to an All-Star hitter on a long-term but quite spendy deal? The Cubs' payroll will be $80-120 million higher in most years compared to the Twins. So, the effect of a huge contract, or even a mid-range contract, isn’t as significant a factor.  

Before we start our top 20…

The Cubs have made a couple of transactions since I created this list. The Cubs added a couple of players to this list, which means two players were removed. I’ll mention the two players who fell out of my Top 20 to show who just missed. 

First, Jaxon Wiggins was the Cubs' second-round pick last year out of Arkansas. He didn’t pitch at all in 2023, recovering from injury, but the Cubs really like what he can be by using such a high draft pick. 

Secondly, I also had catcher Miguel Amaya in one of those spots. Catchers and catching depth are essential in any organization. Amaya finally made his big-league debut with 53 games in 2023. He played well enough that he could be a part-time catcher, and the Cubs have control of him for potentially six or seven more seasons. However, he is out of options already. 

You may slot them ahead of a guy or two in this 16-20 range. 

20. RHP Ben Brown (24)
Originally the 33rd-round pick in 2017 by the Phillies, Ben Brown came to the Cubs at the 2022 trade deadline in exchange for David Robertson. After joining the Cubs, he went 3-0 with a 4.06 ERA in seven starts at the end of the 2022 season. He began 2023 at Double-A Tennessee as well. In four starts, he went 2-0 with a 0.45 ERA. In 51 combined innings at Tennessee, he worked 51 innings and struck out 74 batters with just 19 walks. He moved up to Triple-A Iowa, where he made 15 starts and seven relief appearances. He went 6-8 with a 5.33 ERA. In 72 2/3 innings, he had 100 strikeouts but also walked 50 batters. Brown looks like a big-league starter. He stands 6-6. His fastball is consistently in the upper 90s now, and he's got a curveball that can be a very good pitch. His slider is thrown a bit harder, touching 91 and 92. With those three pitches, he has a chance when he throws strikes. 

Pitching wins, and while the Cubs have a high budget, having players make around league minimum for a few years is valuable. The question is whether Brown can continue to improve and remain a starter where he can potentially be a mid-rotation starter. However, if that doesn’t happen, Brown is the type of pitcher with stuff that could transition to the bullpen and, in time, become dominant. Brown is the Cubs’ #7 prospect at North Side Baseball. 

19. OF Alexander Canario (23) 
Following a 2022 season in which he hit 26 doubles and 37 home runs between three minor-league levels, Alexander Canario began his offseason in the Dominican Winter League. In a game, he hit a regular ground ball to shortstop. He hustled down the line and tripped over the base, sprawling to the ground, clearly in pain. The result was an ankle fracture and a shoulder dislocation. 

The Dominican began a rehab stint in the ACL in mid-June. Two weeks later, he moved up to High-A South Bend for about two more weeks. By mid-July, he was back with the Iowa Cubs, where he hit 12 doubles and eight home runs in 37 games. The Cubs called him up for September, but then he played in just one game over the first three weeks of the month. He struck out in a pinch-hitting opportunity on September 6th for his MLB debut. His next appearance was September 19th. He went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run, and five RBIs. He then had three more plate appearances over the next 10 games. Then, on September 30th, he went 3-for-5 with a triple.  

Over the past two seasons, Canario has experienced some of the highest highs and lowest lows. He received a fourth option year for 2023. But it is important to remember that even though he originally signed with the Giants way back in 2016, he is still just 23 years old. He came to the Cubs from the Giants at the 2021 trade deadline as part of the Kris Bryant trade. And again, he’s returned from a devastating injury to show plus-plus power. Will he hit for average, and can he avoid huge strikeout numbers? But he could provide big power production in the middle of the Cubs lineup for a decade. Will he get that opportunity? Following the trade that sent Jackson Ferris to the Dodgers, Canario is now the Cubs’ #9 prospect, according to North Side Baseball. 

18. RHP Kyle Hendricks (34) 
Hendricks has been an important part of the Chicago Cubs and their starting rotation for a decade. That's not bad for a former eighth-round pick out of Dartmouth. “The Professor” received Rookie of the Year votes in 2014. He finished third in Cy Young voting in 2016 when he went 16-8 with a league-leading 2.13 ERA. He again received Cy Young votes in 2020 when he posted a 2.88 ERA. In between, he never had an ERA over 3.46. Never a strikeout pitcher, Hendricks led the league in Hits allowed in 2021 and had an ERA of 4.77. In 2022, his ERA was 4.80, and he spent the final three months on the Injured List recovering from a tear in his right shoulder. In late May, he returned to the mound for the Cubs and went 6-8 with a 3.74 ERA over 137 innings. Was it enough for them to pick up his $16 million club option for 2024? That’s debatable, but in early November, the Cubs did just that. 

So, while he was such a key in the Cubs rotation in the second half of the 2010s, he fits in near the bottom of this top 20. Unless he were to sign a multi-year contract extension, 2024 will be his final season in the organization. However, Kyle Hendricks is a vital piece to the Cubs 2024 rotation. In the rotation, he will fall in after Justin Steele, Jameson Taillon, and Shota Imanaga. He can be a solid, consistent, stabilizing piece for the Cubs when healthy. Jordan Wicks , Hayden Wesneski, and Javier Assad could fill the fifth spot as the Cubs and their fans wait for Ben Brown and Brandon Birdsell. OK, as we all wait for Cade Horton to make his debut. 

17. Owen Caissie (21)
Owen Caissie’s 2023 season began a little early. He played for Team Canada in the WBC and held his own as a 20-year-old. The Canadian outfielder held his own. He was the second-round draft pick of the Padres in 2020. Before the 2021 season began, he was traded to the Cubs as part of the Yu Darvish trade. He made his pro debut in 2021, and after dominating the Arizona Complex League for 32 games, he moved up to Low-A Myrtle Beach for 22 games. The Cubs aggressively pushed him to High-A South Bend in 2022. He hit .254/.349/.402 (.751) with 21 doubles and 11 homers. He ended the season with 16 games in the Arizona Fall League. He was again pushed aggressively to start the 2023 season and responded incredibly well. In 120 games, he hit .289/.399/.519 (.918) with 31 doubles, 22 home runs, and 84 RBIs. He won’t turn 22 until a week into July and should spend most of the season at Triple-A Iowa. 

Caissie has tremendous power potential and should be a little higher on this list. North Side Baseball ranks him as the #4 Cubs Prospect this offseason. His outfield defense is adequate in the corners of the outfield. He takes his walks. There is one big concern as it relates to his potential. After striking out about 29% of his plate appearances in 2022, that number jumped over 31% at Double-A. With Ian Happ in left field and Seiya Suzuki in right field, the Cubs can slow-play Caissie. Despite strong Double-A numbers in 2023, they could send him back there to see what kind of contact improvement he can make. Like many other sluggers, good things tend to happen when he puts the ball in play. How much more value can he have if he cuts his K/Rate by 2%? By 5%?

16. Kevin Alcantara (21)
In July 2018, the New York Yankees signed Kevin Alcantara from the Dominican Republic to a $1 million signing bonus. After the lost 2020 season, Alcantara’s 2021 FCL season just started when he was traded to the Cubs in the Anthony Rizzo deal. He hit .337 (1.024) with 12 extra-base hits in 25 ACL games for the remainder of the season. He hit .273 (.811) with 19 doubles, six triples, and 15 homers in 122 games for Myrtle Beach in 2022. He also went 14-for-17 in stolen base attempts. He was added to the 40-man roster after the season.

The 6-6 outfielder began the 2023 season at High-A South Bend. In 95 games, he hit .286 (.807) with 25 doubles and 12 homers. He was also 15-for-19 on steal attempts. He missed some time due to injury but ended the season with five games at Double-A Tennessee. He went to the Fall League, and in 21 games, he hit .256 (.865) with seven doubles and five home runs. 

 

Alcantara has the type of physique that any scout would notice. While he hasn’t had a breakout season, he has shown all the tools. Again, at 6-6, he’s got the frame to continue adding power to what he’s already shown. He also runs well for such a big man. While he may never need to, he could play center field if needed. He has a strong arm. He probably won’t hit for average, but that power potential is exciting. After striking out 25% of his plate appearances in 2022, he struck out 24% of the time in 2023. The combination of Caissie, Alcantara, Canario, and Pete Crow-Armstrong, all 21-23 years old, is filled with potential. He ranks #5 on North Side Baseball’s Top Prospect rankings.  

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To recap, here is the first installment of this year's top 20 player assets lists: 
20. Ben Brown, RHP
19. Alexander Canario, OF
18. Kyle Hendricks, RHP
17. Owen Caissie, OF
16. Kevin Alcantara, 3B 

Check back. In the coming days, I will return and continue the countdown with our picks for numbers 11 to 15. For now, let me know what you think of this group of Cubs players.

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