Before I dig into the highlights of the Chicago Cubs' Spring Breakout roster, I suppose a good place to start is breaking down what exactly the Spring Breakout is given this is a fairly new part of spring training in both Florida and Arizona.
In its essence, the MLB Spring Breakout is about all things prospects - putting the best up-and-coming young minor leaguers on the center stage for a four-day event that encompasses more than a dozen games from March 13-16. That timing is more relevant to the Cubs and Dodgers than other teams in the Cactus and Grapefruit Leagues given the team's Japan squad heads to Tokyo on March 11.
That explains the absence of Cubs top prospect Matt Shaw, who is expected to make the team's Opening Day roster out of camp - despite getting a late start to the spring as he recovered from an oblique injury. Outfielder Kevin Alcantara is absent, as he is also expected to travel with the team to Japan, as the club gets to bring extra bodies as part of a taxi squad for the two-game tilt against Los Angeles. Two other notable absences on the announced roster include Owen Caissie (injured) and infielder Jefferson Rojas (unknown).
Cubs' Spring Breakout matchups overlap with MLB team's trip to Japan
All that said, there is still plenty to watch for Cubs fans hoping to catch a glimpse of some of the team's top prospects. Chicago will send three top-100 talents to the event, including catcher Moises Ballesteros, infielder James Triantos and right-hander Cade Horton.
This is a big year for Horton, in particular, after injuries both diminished and shortened his 2024 season after a breakout showing in his first full professional campaign the year prior, in which he reached Double-A. Settling in at Iowa and putting together a full body of work in 2025 will be the top priority for the former Oklahoma standout.
Ballesteros' bat can play - there are no doubts about that. But a long-term positional fit is unclear given concerns about his work behind the plate. Hopefully, he can improve and be an answer there in years to come, because his offensive profile looks better and better with each passing year.
I'd love to see Triantos crack the 26-man at some point this summer. His defensive versatility and absolutely elite bat-to-ball skills are the stuff of dreams and he could be a potential Nico Hoerner successor at some point. For now, though, we'll have to settle for seeing him suit up in the Spring Breakout while the big-league team is overseas.
