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The Cubs recalled top outfield prospect Kevin Alcantara to the active roster this afternoon and optioned infielder Miles Mastrobuoni to the minor leagues in a corresponding move. Alcantara’s first appearance in a game will be his big league debut.

The 22-year-old was first acquired by the Cubs at the trade deadline in 2021 as the headliner going back to Chicago in the deal that sent longtime first baseman Anthony Rizzo to the Yankees alongside right-hander Alexander Vizcaino. Since then, Vizcaino was released by the Cubs after just six games in the organization and is now out of affiliated ball. Fortunately, Alcantara has blossomed with the Cubs into an impressive player on both sides of the ball and even become a consensus top-100 prospect in the sport: the hulking, 6’6” outfielder ranks 60th at ESPN, 69th at MLB.com, and 77th at Baseball America as of each service’s most recent update.

The outfielder has never posted a wRC+ below 123 at any level of the minor leagues since donning a Cubs uniform for the first time, and though he’s not yet hit more than 15 homers or stolen 15 bases in a full season of minor league action to this point in his career scouts have routinely lauded his plus power and speed potential. In 111 games at the Double- and Triple-A levels this year, Alcantara has slashed a solid .278/.353/.428 with 14 homers and 14 steals, including a hot streak in 35 games at Triple-A that’s seen him hit .292/.378/.469 in his first 148 trips to the plate at the highest level of the minors.

One potential red flag in his profile is his tendency towards swing-and-miss: he’s struck out in 25.1% of his plate appearances at the Double-A level throughout his career, and so far in Triple-A that number has jumped up to 29.1%. It’s a flaw Alcantara will surely need to work on in order to reach his potential as an above-average regular in the majors, though his tools still leave plenty of room for optimism about his ceiling. He’s paired that exciting offensive potential with a strong glove that receives positive marks in center field, though scouts have long noted that his strong arm is more than enough for right field as well should he ultimately move to a corner.

With defensive standout Pete Crow-Armstrong having taken over center on a full-time basis in Chicago, it seems likely that right field would be Alcantara’s long-term defensive home in the majors in the event that he manages to work his way into a regular role with the club in the coming years. That may be easier said than done, however. After all, the club’s outfield mix is currently loaded with talent at the big league level with Crow-Armstrong set to patrol center at Wrigley for the next half decade and both Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki locked into the outfield corners through at least the 2026 season. Cody Bellinger has been the club’s regular right fielder since Crow-Armstrong’s arrival, pushing Suzuki to DH and potentially opening a path for Alcantara to work his way into the outfield mix should Bellinger opt out of his contract and return to free agency this winter.

Bellinger opting out of his deal in Chicago is hardly a guarantee, however, and Michael Busch has seemingly locked down his other position of first base for the foreseeable future. Fellow top outfield prospect Owen Caissie is also at the Triple-A level and could debut as soon as next season, further adding to the logjam of outfield options in Chicago. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Cubs look to leverage their outfield depth in an offseason trade this winter to address other areas of the roster given the relative lack of opportunity available to Alcantara (and, for that matter, Caissie) at the big league level, particularly if Bellinger decides to opt in. Both Happ and Suzuki have no-trade clauses, however, somewhat limiting the club’s options to explore trades in that regard.