Chicago Cubs Add Intriguing Prep Right-Hander in Latest Mock Draft

Already flush with young arms, the Chicago Cubs could use their first-round pick next year to add a highly-respected prep pitcher.

Jun 26, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; The cap and glove of Chicago Cubs second baseman Javier Baez (9) rest in the dugout against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park. / Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

For the last four years, the Chicago Cubs have leaned into drafting college players in the first round.

It’s already started to pay off. For instance, 2021 first-round pick Jordan Wicks, a left-handed pitcher, has already made his Major League debut.

Cade Horton, their 2022 first-rounder out of Oklahoma, is with Triple-A Iowa but is out for the season with an injury. The plan is for him to challenge for a spot on the Major League roster next year.

Last year’s first-round pick, Maryland infielder Matt Shaw, was just promoted to Triple-A and played in the MLB Futures Game last month.

Last month, the Cubs selected Florida State’s Cam Smith in the first round. They signed the power hitter to a $5 million bonus and assigned him to Class-A Myrtle Beach. But he has the talent to move quickly through the system.

The Cubs are tracking toward missing the playoffs and getting a mid-first round pick. Bleacher Report recently put together a mock draft for 2025 and projected the Cubs will break their streak of college players and opt for a prep pitcher — Seth Hernandez from Corona, Calif.

The Cubs selected No. 12 overall in this mock.

He recently caught the attention of MLB scouts and fans alike after he threw a 100 mph fastball while pitching in the Area Code Games, a popular tournament for college and pro scouts.

He’s already committed to play college baseball at Vanderbilt, but he has the make-up to bypass the college ranks and head straight to the pros. Some consider him to be the best prep pitching prospect in the draft.

What scouts like, per B/R, is that he already has a pretty clean make-up for a prep pitcher. Along with the fastball, he boasts quality command and mechanics. He’s also developed an above-average change-up.

Teams that pick Hernandez may be intrigued by the fact that he can play in the field, too. Perfect Game lists him as a corner infielder and outfielder. He played in Perfect Game’s 2024 All-America Classic.

The last prep player the Cubs selected in the first round was Ed Howard, a shortstop from Mount Carmel High School in Chicago. Howard is still with the Cubs at their High-A affiliate in South Bend.

Chicago hasn’t taken a prep pitcher in the first round since 2012, when it picked Paul Blackburn out of Heritage High School in Brentwood, Calif. That was a compensatory first-rounder. Blackburn is now pitching for the New York Mets.