Chicago Cubs Minor League Pitchers of the Month: April 2026

The cupboard is not quite stocked with pitching for the Chicago Cubs. Per Baseball America, just five pitchers rank among the top 20 prospects for the Cubs, with just one in the top 12. Brandon Birdsell (14th), is not expected to pitch this season after elbow surgery. Jaxon Wiggins (third) hit the IL on April 15th with elbow soreness. No one on the following list is in the upper minor leagues, so this is a system that will require patience on the pitching side. With April officially in the books, which prospects stood out and increased their stock?

Honorable Mention: Brooks Caple (RHP) — South Bend

Taken in the ninth round in 2024, Caple made his debut in 2025 with a good seven-start stretch in Myrtle Beach before getting promoted to South Bend and turning in 14 starts to finish his season. Back to South Bend to start 2026, Caple had a quality month on the bump. In his four April starts, Caple posted a 24-to-3 strikeout:walk ratio while limiting opponents to just six runs on 12 hits in 18.2 innings. Near the top of the Midwest league in WHIP and strikeouts, Caple has both increased his strikeout rate and lowered his walk rate, an excellent combination. 

Third Place: Edwardo Melendez (RHP) — Myrtle Beach

An older international signing at 20 years of age out of the Dominican Republic, Melendez made his debut stateside in 2025 with stops in Arizona and Myrtle Beach after a year in the Dominican Summer League. While consistently posting high strikeout numbers and limiting hits, Melendez has paired that with extremely high walk rates that led to unimpressive box score lines. He looks to have potentially unlocked something so far in 2026 as he walked just seven in his 15.2 innings between the bullpen and the rotation in Myrtle Beach, a huge improvement. That, combined with 23 strikeouts and just seven hits allowed, has led to a 1.15 ERA in April for the 22-year-old that should open some eyes.      

Runner-up: Dominick Reid (RHP) — Myrtle Beach

With Jostin Florentino (15th) and Kaleb Wing (17th) not yet debuting in affiliated ball this season, the only Cubs top-20 prospect entering 2026 to qualify for this list winds up the runner up. Drafted in the third round of last season’s draft out of Abilene Christian in Texas, Reid did not make his professional debut until this season. Starting the season in Myrtle Beach, Reid made five starts for the Pelicans in April. In 18.1 innings, he struck out 21 while allowing 10 runs on 19 hits and 7 walks. Reid opened the season with nine scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts against just one walk. The average ERA in the Carolina league is 5.38, so his 4.91 ERA looks better with that context. The hope is that as the season progresses Reid can settle in a bit and find the middle ground between his first nine innings of the month and the last nine innings.

Winner: Mason McGwire (RHP) — Myrtle Beach

You may have heard, Mark McGwire’s son is racking up strikeouts on the mound for the Cubs. An eighth-round pick out of high school in 2022, Little Mac is pitching for the first time since 2024 due to injuries, and he is turning some heads. He started the month in the bullpen and finished with two starts, striking out 18 and allowing just two runs on five hits in 12 innings. His velocity looks to be up higher than it was pre-injury and he has doubled his strikeout rate and cut his walk rate in half in his return to the mound. While the 22-year-old looks to be years away from Wrigley, the thought of Big Mac’s son pitching in Cubbie blue is pretty entertaining.