Teenage hurler Kaleb Wing skyrockets up the rankings after a dominant Single-A debut, while recurring injury concerns cause former top arm Jaxon Wiggins to tumble.
Prospect rankings are ever-changing.
That’s why ESPN decides to update every team’s top 10 prospects every month. In last month’s edition, Chicago Cubs prospects Pedro Ramirez, Josiah Hartshorn, and Cole Mathis were the biggest risers.
Now, at the start of June, there’s a new set of top-10 prospects for the Cubs. Ramirez is the team’s new No. 1 prospect, and two well-known prospects in Chicago’s farm system continue to fall.
So, here are the biggest risers and fallers from ESPN’s latest prospect rankings.
Riser: Kaleb Wing
Right-hander Kaleb Wing was not among the Cubs’ top-10 prospects in May’s edition at ESPN. But that has changed this month, as Wing has looked really good in his first two career starts at Single-A Myrtle Beach.
The 19-year-old threw four scoreless innings with six strikeouts in his first career Single-A start on May 22 and then threw three more scoreless innings with four strikeouts on Thursday. After beginning the year at rookie ball, Wing has shown a ton of promise so far with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans.
Wing comes in as the Cubs’ No. 5 prospect on ESPN and is the biggest riser in this month’s edition. He is already hitting 95-96 mph on the radar gun to go with a plus-plus curveball. Chicago selected him in the fourth round of the 2025 MLB Draft.
Faller: Jaxon Wiggins
Hard-throwing right-hander Jaxon Wiggins was once the Cubs’ top prospect on multiple sites, including ESPN. But ESPN has dropped him to the No. 4 spot in this month’s prospect update, a fall that isn’t that surprising.
Wiggins has been sidelined since early April due to right elbow inflammation. Although he is slowly working his way back from that injury, there are some long-term health concerns. The 24-year-old dealt with some arm fatigue last year and has only thrown eight innings pitched so far this year.
The talent is definitely there for Wiggins. He finished with a 2.19 ERA and 97 strikeouts across 78 innings in 2025, and he has a mean fastball that reaches triple digits. However, his inability to stay healthy drops him down a few spots.
Riser: Josiah Hartshorn
Josiah Hartshorn continues to display his potential in his first professional season in the Cubs organization. After being selected in the sixth round of the 2025 MLB Draft, Hartshorn has already made a quick impression.
Hartshorn slashed .273/.424/.460 with five home runs, nine doubles, one triple, 25 RBI, and four stolen bases in his first 39 games at Single-A. Those strong numbers earned him a promotion to High-A South Bend in late May. In his first six games at South Bend, he is 7-for-20 (.350 batting average) with two home runs, 10 RBI, and five walks.
Hartshorn has shown his all-around talent at both Single-A and High-A to start the 2026 season. That has him as a big riser in ESPN’s latest prospect update. The 19-year-old checks in at the No. 3 spot (two spots higher than last month).
Faller: Ethan Conrad
Ethan Conrad has not been able to stay healthy in his short professional career. He was still recovering from a torn labrum and a dislocated shoulder when the Cubs picked him 17th overall in the 2025 MLB Draft, so he did not play any Minor League games last year.
Fast forward almost one year since the Cubs drafted him, and the outfielder has still not played in any Minor League games. The 21-year-old has been dealing with an unspecified back injury since late March.
The fact that Conrad has not made his professional debut yet is quite concerning. The best ability is availability, and the young prospect has not been able to stay healthy. He drops from No. 4 to No. 8 in this recent prospect update on ESPN.
