Cubs Prospect Profile: Yahil Melendez |
Over the past few days, the Cubs have been very active. They have traded for Eli Morgan and Matt Thaiss while also releasing Patrick Wisdom, Adbert Alzolay, and Brennen Davis. You also saw former No. 21 prospect ALfonsin Rosario sent the Guardians way as part of the Morgan trade, as the Cubs were expected to be active on the trade front this season.
With Rosario now in Cleveland and Davis being taken off the 40-man roster, there will be some changes to the Cubs' top 30 prospect list, as players will move up on the list. Their departures will also allow some players to enter the list, which is what we have in Yahil Melendez, who checks in at No. 30 on the Cubs' new prospect list. Melendez takes over for Jonathon Long, who moved from 30 to 29, with Ben Cowles going from 29-28. Getting back to Melendez for a bit, and this is one of the few prospects that most Cubs fans aren't as familiar with as the SS/3B was acquired in the seventh round of the 2023 MLB draft and spent all of last season in Rookie Ball. A Puerto Rican High School product, Melendez had several offers to play college baseball, including a scholarship to Rice University, one of the best college baseball schools in Texas. After weighing his future and all the options attached to it, Melendez elected to turn down the scholarship offers he had and instead signed with the Cubs for 400,000. Melendez hasn't made the impact some of the Cubs' other prospects have made just yet, as he has spent his first two seasons in Rookie Ball, but the attributes are there, as he is one of the more intriguing prospects in their entire system. 2023 was a wash for Melendez, as he only played in 10 games that summer, hitting .237 across those games and driving in three. This past summer, Melendez not only had a regular role but started to show the Cubs what he is about, as A-Ball is calling his name in 2025. Not only did Melendez lead the Arizona Cubs in games played with 53, but he played well across those 53 games, finishing the season with a .268 average. Along with the average comes some solid power numbers across the board. He finished the season with 13 doubles, three triples, three homers, 23 RBIs, and even 11 steals. Not bad for a player who only saw action in 10 games the season prior, and Melendez is only going to get better the further up the professional ranks he goes. The 19-year-old has a lengthy 6-3 frame, but at 165 pounds, he needs to add some weight to strengthen his frame. One of the many left-handed hitters in the Cubs system, Melendez uses a compact swing for his size and hits the ball much harder than most prospects his age. Despite hitting just three homers last season, he has shown the ability to elevate the ball consistently to the point where he could be a 25-30 player once he fills out his body. Like many young hitters, his game is a lot of swing-and-miss, and he will have to make adjustments to learn how to hit pitches in the zone consistently. He not only chases pitches but also swings through a lot of strikes. Had he been able to make more consistent contact at times last season, there is a high likelihood he would've hit close to .300, and that is a huge accomplishment for such a young and unpolished product. While his offensive upside is through the roof, there is much more to being a great baseball player than hitting. Defensively speaking, Melendez is a solid defender with a plus arm that should translate well as he moves up the lineup. Not the fastest player out there, Melendez makes up for that with his quick reaction time, which allows him to get to the ball quickly, giving him plenty of time to set his feet and throw. Should he lose some of that quickness once he adds strength, a position change is most likely coming, which is why the Cubs used him at third base along with SS during the season. He also saw time at 2B, as the Cubs want to make sure he can play all over the infield to increase his value as a potential trade target or to get him to the next level quicker than normal.
