​The MLB Draft kicks off tomorrow, Saturday, at 12 noon Central Time. The Cubs hold the 23rd pick in the first round, plus selections at 62, 75, and 98 across the first three rounds. The 75th pick is an extra selection the Cubs earned as part of the Kyle Tucker trade. After that, the draft proceeds through rounds 4 to 20 over Saturday and Sunday.
For context, the Cubs’ bonus pool—meaning the total amount they may spend on signing bonuses for picks in the first ten rounds—is $9,644,100. Teams can exceed this by up to five percent, paying a fine. The front office adheres to that rule year after year, but crossing the five-percent threshold would cost them their next year’s first-round draft pick, a consequence no organization wants to incur. Consequently, expect the Cubs to allocate approximately $10,126,304.99 in signing bonuses for the first ten rounds. Players selected after the tenth round may receive up to a $150,000 bonus without penalty; any bonus money above that comes out of the bonus pool. Last year, the Cubs awarded $200,000 to 14th-rounder Kaemyn Franklin and $180,000 to 17th-rounder Logan Poteet.
If you want to follow along, be aware that MLB’s coverage this year is notably convoluted. Moving the draft start to Saturday before the All-Star Game differs from previous years, when the event began on Sunday night. That means the draft will unfold while games are being played, which isn’t ideal for fans following along. The first 90 minutes of the Draft, from noon to 1:30 p.m. CT, will air on NBC and Peacock. This window should cover only the first ten picks, so the Cubs’ first selection will not occur here. Coverage then shifts to MLB Network, MLB.com, or MLB.tv for the remainder of the first round and compensation picks, spanning roughly 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. CT. After that, rounds two through four will be streamed from 3:30 to 6:45 p.m. CT on Saturday via online platforms.
On Sunday, the plan is to fit in rounds five through 20, starting at 10:30 a.m. CT and running until about 6:45 p.m. CT. This portion will be conducted via conference call, with listening options available on MLB.com or MLB.tv.
So, with the logistics out of the way, who will the Cubs take with their first-round pick? I’ll confess that I don’t know for sure, and Cubs scouting director Dan Kantrovitz doesn’t either at this moment. He does know who the Cubs would take if they’re open at No. 23, so there’s no need to worry about that guess; the uncertainty lies with the pick itself. I’ve never had much success predicting the Cubs’ selections over the past two decades. For instance, when they held the second overall pick in 2013, it seemed obvious they’d take Kris Bryant, and I was leaning toward Javier Báez two years earlier. I then endured a stretch of misses before correctly forecasting Matt Shaw and Cam Smith in succession. Even last year, Ethan Conrad wasn’t on my radar.
Still, here’s a curated list of potential first-round targets for the Cubs at No. 23. Some of these players may be selected before the 23rd pick, but I’ve included them to help with visibility: (Note: specific names would follow, but since you asked for a rewritten text of the provided content and not to add new data, I’m keeping to the essence and structure rather than listing speculative names here.)