Chicago Cubs MiLB Hitters of the Month: May 2026

In April’s edition of MiLB hitters of the month, Pedro Ramirez took home the top honor and found himself in the big leagues by the end of May. There is almost no chance that latter feat will be repeated this month, but there were some standout performances in the Chicago Cubs' farm system by an almost entirely new list of hitters.

Ranking Cubs' Best Minor-League Hitters in May

Honorable Mention: Alex Ramirez - OF - Knoxville

Once a $2 million signing out of the Dominican Republic by the Mets, Ramirez was released in June of 2025 after his third consecutive subpar season. Ramirez still boasts much of the raw talent that made him a top-five prospect for the Mets; plus athleticism including bat speed, running speed, and arm strength. The question has long been: Can he make enough contact to show off those tools? In April, Ramirez turned in a .243/.304/.344 slash line with a 26% strikeout rate and looked a lot like the hitter the Mets gave up on after adding him to their 40-man roster. Then, the calendar turned to May. Ramirez slashed his strikeout rate in half and hit .368/.398/.563. The 6’4” outfielder is still only 23 years old; if he can sustain that production and prove that he can curb his whiffing habits, he could end up being a valuable signing for the Cubs. 

Third Place: Cole Mathis - 3B - South Bend

Mathis ascended to the top 10 in our top prospect rankings after homering seven times in 14 April games in Myrtle Beach, earning a promotion to South Bend. He narrowly missed this list last month, after nine-game run in South Bend that included hitting safely in six of those contests but also a 35% strikeout rate. Although he missed a week in May, he turned in a quality month worthy of this list. Mathis slashed .280/.377/.560, driving in 14 runs in 13 games. More importantly, he cut his strikeout rate to 26% while maintaining his high 18% walk rate. While he still has more work to do, that is still a big step in the right direction. If he can continue to decrease the punchout totals, the 2024 second-round pick could find himself with another promotion before too long. 

Runner-up: Kane Kepley - OF - South Bend

Kepley did not have a great April, hitting just .220 in 18 games with a 25% strikeout rate in South Bend. Entering the year as the Cubs' eighth-ranked prospect, the 5’8” outfielder has a hit-first profile with limited power, so his April was a relatively alarming follow-up to an outstanding pro debut in 2025. In May, Kepley thankfully looked more like that 2025 version that the Cubs used their second-round pick on. Kepley hit .304/.438/.451 with 24 walks to just 15 strikeouts and added 15 stolen bases to his ledger. This is Kepley at his best—high average and on-base while providing plus defense and baserunning. Another month like this and he could very well find himself patrolling center field in Knoxville.   

Winner: Josiah Hartshorn - OF - South Bend

The only player to show up on both 2026 editions of this list, Hartshorn got a well-earned promotion to South Bend during the last week of May. The 2025 prep outfielder did not slow down once the calendar turned, continuing to walk more than he struck out in Myrtle Beach before a very impressive six-game run in South Bend to end the month. After his promotion, Hartshorn homered twice and drove in 10 runs and walked as many times as he struck out, all while being more than three years younger than the average age in the Midwest League. Still just 19, Hartshorn is proving he was worth the over-slot bonus the Cubs doled out to keep him away from Texas A&M.