Hand up, I did not realize just how bad rookie Moises Ballesteros has been since late April. While no one should be surprised that the Chicago Cubs sent him to Triple-A, the 22-year-old’s numbers as of late have been appalling.
The team made the roster move prior to Friday’s series opener against the Toronto Blue Jays, calling up veteran outfielder Justin Dean to take Ballesteros’ spot on the 26-man roster. Ballesteros began the season with high expectations as one of the players tasked with making up for Kyle Tucker’s 2025 production. At first, it seemed like a genius decision as Ballesteros appeared to be a legit Rookie of the Year candidate, beginning 2026 with a 1.144 OPS through April 27.
At that point, Ballesteros had a slash line of .387/.435/.710 with five home runs in 69 plate appearances. The rookie’s hard-hit rate of 56.9% ranked 10th among 275 hitters with at least 60 plate appearances through April 27. He was doing exactly what he had at every level in baseball, hitting line drives all over the field, and more importantly, Ballesteros was tapping into his power.
But holy shit has Ballesteros fallen off a cliff since hitting that grand slam against the San Diego Padres.
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Moises Ballesteros Last 34 Games
106 PA, 12-for-94, 24 K, 11 BB
.128/.217/.170, 1 HR, 1 2B, 7 RBI
Ballesteros has been the worst hitter in MLB dating back to April 28 among players with at least 100 trips to the plate. His hard-hit rate has dropped to 39.4%, while his ground ball rate has increased to 50.7%. Ballesteros last hit a home run on May 3 against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
With the struggles, Ballesteros has been given fewer starts, so now that Matt Shaw is back from the injured list, it is a good time to send the young player back to Triple-A for a reset. He’ll get to play every day, and hopefully that can get Ballesteros back to the hitter he was at the beginning of this year and has been his entire life.
As long as Shaw receives more starts than Michael Conforto, this is a good move all around from the Cubs.
