Why This Former Chicago Cubs Top 30 Prospect Fell out of Rankings

This Chicago Cubs prospect was on track to reach the Majors but now he’s fallen off the top prospects list and has been demoted.

Mar 13, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Great Britain batter BJ Murray Jr. hits a sacrifice fly to bring in a run in the fourth inning against Colombia during the World Baseball Classic at Chase Field. / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Going into this season, the Chicago Cubs thought they had an infielder poised for a potential call-up late this season.

Now, B.J. Murray Jr. probably wants to erase this season and move on to 2025.

That’s how Baseball America sees it. The publication put together a list of a prospect from each organization that is looking for a fresh start next season, even though the minor league season isn’t done yet.

Murray, a 24-year-old third baseman, could use the fresh start.

At the start of this season Murray was with Triple-A Iowa, one of many top prospects that have been with the Cubs’ top affiliate in Des Moines. The Cubs had to put him on the 7-day injured list on July 24 and he just returned to the field, but he is with Double-A Tennessee.

Why? In the interim, last year’s first-round pick, Matt Shaw — now the Cubs’ No. 1 overall prospect — is with Iowa and plays third base.

Murray’s numbers this season certainly haven’t helped matters. In 94 games he’s slashed .194/.307/.331/.638 with 11 home runs and 39 RBI. Those are the worst numbers of his career for a full-season affiliate.

Baseball America noted that even though Murray’s average has dipped significantly, he is still controlling the strike zone as he has in recent years. He’s drawn 50 walks against 92 strikeouts this season after he had 82 walks against 129 strikeouts in 2023.

But his batting average has dipped nearly 75 points from last season, and all the drawn walks won’t compensate for his inability to get the bat on the ball consistently. That’s why a fresh start next season may help.

The Cubs selected Murray in the 15th round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Florida Atlantic, where the Nassau, Bahamas, native landed to play college baseball.

Murray put together a promising slash of .286/.344/.482/.826 with two home runs and eight RBI in 16 games with the Cubs’ Arizona Complex League team at the end of the 2021 season.

He started moving up the ladder in 2022, as he split time between Class-A Myrtle Beach and High-A South Bend. Combined, he batted .286/.410/.429/.839 with eight home runs and 53 RBI in 95 games.

In 2023 he took the big jump. He spent the entire season at Tennessee, where he earned a spot in the MLB Futures Game representing the Cubs during All-Star Game weekend. In 124 games he slashed .263/.382/.462/.844 with career-highs in home runs (16) and RBI (74). He also had a career-high 34 doubles.