Brailyn Marquez

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Chicago Cubs #3 prospect in 2022
  Track Record: Marquez signed with the Cubs for $600,000 when he was 16 and blossomed into one of the hardest-throwing lefthanded pitchers in the minors. He made his major league debut on the final day of the 2020 season and entered last year as the Cubs’ No. 1 prospect, but he contracted Covid-19 before spring training and then suffered a shoulder strain trying to build up his arm strength. His shoulder injury lingered and caused him to abort multiple rehab attempts throughout the year, and he ended up missing the entire season.
  
  Scouting Report: When healthy, Marquez overwhelms hitters with a fastball that sits at 96-98 mph and touches 102 with remarkably little effort. He pairs it with a mid-to-upper 80s slider with excellent depth and a 90-91 mph changeup he sells well with his arm speed. He also developed a low-80s curveball at the alternate training site in 2020 that he can land for strikes early in counts. Marquez’s stuff is overpowering, but he’s only a fair athlete and struggles to repeat his delivery and release point. His fastball sails high to his arm side when his delivery is not on time and he has yet to show he can throw his slider and changeup for strikes consistently. He has stretches where he pounds the strike zone, but he also has spurts of extreme wildness. He projects to have fringe-average control overall and will have to improve both his fitness and mechanics to reach average control.
  
  The Future: Marquez is a wild card depending on the health of his shoulder. Provided his stuff returns intact, he has a chance to be a hard-throwing, mid-rotation starter if he improves his control. If not, he has the stuff to be a closer out of the bullpen.
  
• 
  Ranked Chicago Cubs #1 prospect in 2021
  Fastball: 80. Slider: 60. Changeup: 50. Curveball: 45. Control: 45.
  
  TRACK RECORD: The Cubs signed Marquez out of the Dominican Republic for $600,000 in 2015, the largest signing bonus given to any lefthanded pitcher in that year’s international class. He sat in the low 90s with a projectable body when he signed and has since filled out to become one of baseball’s hardest-throwing lefthanders. Marquez began touching 98 mph as a starter in the short-season Northwest League in 2018, then in 2019 began sitting in the upper 90s and touched 102 mph as he conquered both Class A levels. The Cubs sent him to their alternate training site in 2020, where he held his own facing more experienced hitters. He received his first callup on the final day of the regular season, but it did not go well with three walks, two wild pitches and five earned runs allowed in two-thirds of an inning against the White Sox.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Marquez generates some of the easiest velocity of any pitching prospect. His fastball sits 97-98 mph and frequently touches triple digits with startlingly little effort. He holds his velocity through his starts and has steadily become more durable every season. Marquez can dominate with his fastball alone and often does, but he is still working to improve his fastball command. He has long limbs and a thick midsection, so the Cubs have had to work with him to remain athletic in his delivery and get his upper and lower body synced up. Marquez throws his fastball for strikes when he’s on time in his delivery, but when he isn’t, it sails to his arm side or gets pulled into the righthanded batter’s box. Marquez previously threw a mid-80s slider as his breaking ball, but he began working on pitch design at the Cubs’ alternate site and separated out a slider and curveball. His slider now sits in the upper 80s with added power and tunnels well off of his fastball. His mid-80s, slurvy curveball is a change-of-pace option he can land for strikes. Marquez rounds out his arsenal with a hard 89-91 mph changeup that is getting more swings and misses every year. He sells his changeup with his arm speed and has gradually improved his command to make it a more consistent weapon. Marquez goes right after hitters and isn’t afraid to challenge them, but he still has spurts of wildness. He is continuing to work on landing his secondary pitches in the strike zone and maintaining consistent fastball command.
  
  THE FUTURE: Marquez features explosive, top-of-the-rotation stuff from the left side. Whether he continues to improve his control will determine whether he reaches that ceiling or ends up in the bullpen, where he would have closer potential.
• 
  Ranked Chicago Cubs #1 prospect in 2020
  TRACK RECORD: When the Cubs gave Marquez $600,000 in 2015, they did so with the idea that his fastball, which sat in the low 90s, had the potential to give hitters nightmares. They were right. Marquez hinted at his potential in an excellent 2018 season that ended with him ranked as the No. 3 prospect in the Northwest League. He showed up even stronger in 2019, which ended in his first appearance on the Top 100 Prospects.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Marquez's signature pitch is his fastball, which sits in the upper 90s and regularly reaches triple digits. He peaked at 102 mph, which he reached 24 times in 2019. Marquez pairs the fastball with a spike slider in the low 80s that, at its best, tunnels with his fastball and features short, late snap. He also throws a changeup in the 89-91 mph range that he can use to get swings and misses. The pitch needs more consistency to reach its projection as an average major league offering. The Cubs point to a two-year process Marquez went through to get his arms and legs to sync up during his delivery as one of the main drivers of his improved ability to throw quality strikes. They also worked to get his arm stroke back to the longer, smoother version he showed as an amateur instead of the shorter, choppier one it had morphed into. Once those elements were in place, he needed to learn how to sequence. Instead of using his velocity to blow fastballs by hitters, he needed to have the intuition and confidence to throw his offspeed pitches in appropriate counts. That process was part of the reason the Cubs kept Marquez at low Class A South Bend until Aug. 6. Even with his raised profile, there are still plenty of ways Marquez can continue to improve. Maintaining command will be a continual process, especially given his size and long levers. He needs to continue to refine his changeup, especially considering that it is thrown with similar velocity as his breaking ball.
  
  THE FUTURE: For an organization that has struggled mightily to develop pitchers, Marquez represents hope. If he can maintain his delivery and bring his offspeed pitches forward, he could fit as a franchise starter at the front of a rotation. If not, his elite velocity from the left side could lead him into a closer's role. Either role would be an outcome befitting the organization's No. 1 prospect.
• 
  Ranked Chicago Cubs #3 prospect in 2019
  Track Record: Marquez's $600,000 bonus was the biggest for any lefthander in the 2015 international class. He earned that bonus by showing a present low-90s fastball along with projection to spare. He followed a strong pro debut in the Dominican Summer League with a rocky turn in the Rookie-level Arizona League before breaking out at short-season Eugene in 2018. He ranked No. 3 on the Northwest League's Top 20 prospect list.
  
  Scouting Report: Marquez stands out immediately for his power fastball from the left side. The pitch sits in the mid-90s, touches 98 mph and shows riding life through the zone. He backs it up with a pair of offspeed pitches that need refinement but project as above-average or better. His mid-80s slider snaps out of the zone at its best, but he needs to find more consistent spin to keep it from becoming loose and looking like a bad curveball. Marquez's changeup, thrown around 86-91 mph, shows hard lateral movement like a two-seam fastball away from righthanded hitters. He also showed a strong idea of how to set hitters up and continue to throw his best stuff with men on base. He needs to get stronger to maintain his velocity through the later innings and repeat his delivery, which would help improve his fringy command.
  
  The Future: Marquez finished 2018 at low Class A South Bend and should return there to begin 2019. He has the ceiling of a mid-rotation starter.

Minor League Top Prospects

• 
  Ranked Midwest League #3 prospect in 2019
  Even in today’s game, a lefthanded starter who can touch 100 mph is notable. Marquez is one the most electrifying southpaws in the minors, though he faces plenty of work ahead. At the end of the day, he has the pure stuff to be a solid major league starter—or dominating reliever. “The stuff has always been there,” a scout said. “He sits upper 90s, averaging nearly 96 (mph). His curveball has come on and he’s working on his changeup. He’s still working on consistency and growing into his body. He’s not fully coordinated yet and still mastering his mechanics.” Marquez will have his arm slot wander at times—he walked seven in 3.2 innings in one early-season start—but he also finished his Midwest League season by striking out 22 and allowing just two baserunners in his final 12 innings.
• 
  Ranked Northwest League #3 prospect in 2018
  After two seasons at the Cubs’ minor league complex in Arizona, Marquez graduated to the Northwest League in 2018. Before moving to low Class A South Bend late in the summer, Marquez showed all the ingredients necessary to make evaluators believe he has a future in a major league rotation. The first thing that jumps out about Marquez is his fastball, which regularly parks in the mid-90s and touched as high as 98 mph this summer. His best secondary pitch is a mid-80s breaking ball, which seems to vacillate between a slider and a curveball. It is an above-average pitch now and could be plus in the future with further repetition and refinement. His 86-91 mph changeup is presently a little behind. It has plenty of movement but often has less separation than most changeups. Marquez needs to work on repeating his delivery, but his ceiling is as high as any pitcher in the Cubs’ system.

Top 100 Rankings

• Ranked Baseball America's #52 prospect in 2021
• Ranked Baseball America's #37 prospect in 2020

• April, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade: 45/Extreme
  
  Track Record: Marquez signed with the Cubs for $600,000 when he was 16 and blossomed into one of the hardest-throwing pitchers in the minors. He made his major league debut on the final day of the 2020 season and entered last year as the Cubs&#39 No. 1 prospect, but he contracted Covid-19 before spring training and then suffered a shoulder strain trying to build up his arm strength. His shoulder injury lingered and caused him to abort multiple rehab attempts throughout the year, and he ended up missing the entire season.
  
  Scouting Report: When healthy, Marquez overwhelms hitters with a fastball that sits at 96-98 mph and touches 102 with remarkably little effort. He pairs it with a mid-to-upper 80s slider with excellent depth and a 90-91 mph changeup he sells well with his arm speed. He also developed a low-80s curveball at the alternate training site in 2020 that he can land for strikes early in counts. Marquez&#39s stuff is overpowering, but he&#39s only a fair athlete and struggles to repeat his delivery and release point. His fastball sails high to his arm side when his delivery is not on time and he has yet to show he can throw his slider and changeup for strikes consistently. He has stretches where he pounds the strike zone, but he also has spurts of extreme wildness.
  
  The Future: Marquez is a wild card depending on the health of his shoulder. Provided his stuff returns intact, he has a chance to be a No. 2 or 3 starter if he improves his control or a closer if he moves to the bullpen.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 80. Curveball: 40. Slider: 60. Changeup: 50. Control: 45.
• December, 2021 Scouting Report
  Track Record: Marquez signed with the Cubs for $600,000 when he was 16 and blossomed into one of the hardest-throwing lefthanded pitchers in the minors. He made his major league debut on the final day of the 2020 season and entered last year as the Cubs’ No. 1 prospect, but he contracted Covid-19 before spring training and then suffered a shoulder strain trying to build up his arm strength. His shoulder injury lingered and caused him to abort multiple rehab attempts throughout the year, and he ended up missing the entire season.
  
  Scouting Report: When healthy, Marquez overwhelms hitters with a fastball that sits at 96-98 mph and touches 102 with remarkably little effort. He pairs it with a mid-to-upper 80s slider with excellent depth and a 90-91 mph changeup he sells well with his arm speed. He also developed a low-80s curveball at the alternate training site in 2020 that he can land for strikes early in counts. Marquez’s stuff is overpowering, but he’s only a fair athlete and struggles to repeat his delivery and release point. His fastball sails high to his arm side when his delivery is not on time and he has yet to show he can throw his slider and changeup for strikes consistently. He has stretches where he pounds the strike zone, but he also has spurts of extreme wildness. He projects to have fringe-average control overall and will have to improve both his fitness and mechanics to reach average control.
  
  The Future: Marquez is a wild card depending on the health of his shoulder. Provided his stuff returns intact, he has a chance to be a hard-throwing, mid-rotation starter if he improves his control. If not, he has the stuff to be a closer out of the bullpen.
  
• July, 2021 Scouting Report
  Fastball: 80. Slider: 60. Changeup: 50. Curveball: 45. Control: 45.
  
  TRACK RECORD: The Cubs signed Marquez out of the Dominican Republic for $600,000 in 2015, the largest signing bonus given to any lefthanded pitcher in that year's international class. He sat in the low 90s with a projectable body when he signed and has since filled out to become one of baseball's hardest-throwing lefthanders. Marquez began touching 98 mph as a starter in the short-season Northwest League in 2018, then in 2019 began sitting in the upper 90s and touched 102 mph as he conquered both Class A levels. The Cubs sent him to their alternate training site in 2020, where he held his own facing more experienced hitters. He received his first callup on the final day of the regular season, but it did not go well with three walks, two wild pitches and five earned runs allowed in two-thirds of an inning against the White Sox.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Marquez generates some of the easiest velocity of any pitching prospect. His fastball sits 97-98 mph and frequently touches triple digits with startlingly little effort. He holds his velocity through his starts and has steadily become more durable every season. Marquez can dominate with his fastball alone and often does, but he is still working to improve his fastball command. He has long limbs and a thick midsection, so the Cubs have had to work with him to remain athletic in his delivery and get his upper and lower body synced up. Marquez throws his fastball for strikes when he's on time in his delivery, but when he isn't, it sails to his arm side or gets pulled into the righthanded batter's box. Marquez previously threw a mid-80s slider as his breaking ball, but he began working on pitch design at the Cubs' alternate site and separated out a slider and curveball. His slider now sits in the upper 80s with added power and tunnels well off of his fastball. His mid-80s, slurvy curveball is a change-of-pace option he can land for strikes. Marquez rounds out his arsenal with a hard 89-91 mph changeup that is getting more swings and misses every year. He sells his changeup with his arm speed and has gradually improved his command to make it a more consistent weapon. Marquez goes right after hitters and isn't afraid to challenge them, but he still has spurts of wildness. He is continuing to work on landing his secondary pitches in the strike zone and maintaining consistent fastball command.
  
  THE FUTURE: Marquez features explosive, top-of-the-rotation stuff from the left side. Whether he continues to improve his control will determine whether he reaches that ceiling or ends up in the bullpen, where he would have closer potential.
• March, 2021 Scouting Report
  Fastball: 80. Slider: 60. Changeup: 50. Curveball: 45. Control: 45.
  
  TRACK RECORD: The Cubs signed Marquez out of the Dominican Republic for $600,000 in 2015, the largest signing bonus given to any lefthanded pitcher in that year’s international class. He sat in the low 90s with a projectable body when he signed and has since filled out to become one of baseball’s hardest-throwing lefthanders. Marquez began touching 98 mph as a starter in the short-season Northwest League in 2018, then in 2019 began sitting in the upper 90s and touched 102 mph as he conquered both Class A levels. The Cubs sent him to their alternate training site in 2020, where he held his own facing more experienced hitters. He received his first callup on the final day of the regular season, but it did not go well with three walks, two wild pitches and five earned runs allowed in two-thirds of an inning against the White Sox.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Marquez generates some of the easiest velocity of any pitching prospect. His fastball sits 97-98 mph and frequently touches triple digits with startlingly little effort. He holds his velocity through his starts and has steadily become more durable every season. Marquez can dominate with his fastball alone and often does, but he is still working to improve his fastball command. He has long limbs and a thick midsection, so the Cubs have had to work with him to remain athletic in his delivery and get his upper and lower body synced up. Marquez throws his fastball for strikes when he’s on time in his delivery, but when he isn’t, it sails to his arm side or gets pulled into the righthanded batter’s box. Marquez previously threw a mid-80s slider as his breaking ball, but he began working on pitch design at the Cubs’ alternate site and separated out a slider and curveball. His slider now sits in the upper 80s with added power and tunnels well off of his fastball. His mid-80s, slurvy curveball is a change-of-pace option he can land for strikes. Marquez rounds out his arsenal with a hard 89-91 mph changeup that is getting more swings and misses every year. He sells his changeup with his arm speed and has gradually improved his command to make it a more consistent weapon. Marquez goes right after hitters and isn’t afraid to challenge them, but he still has spurts of wildness. He is continuing to work on landing his secondary pitches in the strike zone and maintaining consistent fastball command.
  
  THE FUTURE: Marquez features explosive, top-of-the-rotation stuff from the left side. Whether he continues to improve his control will determine whether he reaches that ceiling or ends up in the bullpen, where he would have closer potential.
• December, 2020 Scouting Report
  Fastball: 80. Slider: 60. Changeup: 50. Curveball: 45. Control: 45.
  
  TRACK RECORD: The Cubs signed Marquez out of the Dominican Republic for $600,000 in 2015, the largest signing bonus given to any lefthanded pitcher in that year’s international class. He sat in the low 90s with a projectable body when he signed and has since filled out to become one of baseball’s hardest-throwing lefthanders. Marquez began touching 98 mph as a starter in the short-season Northwest League in 2018, then in 2019 began sitting in the upper 90s and touched 102 mph as he conquered both Class A levels. The Cubs sent him to their alternate training site in 2020, where he held his own facing more experienced hitters. He received his first callup on the final day of the regular season, but it did not go well with three walks, two wild pitches and five earned runs allowed in two-thirds of an inning against the White Sox.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Marquez generates some of the easiest velocity of any pitching prospect. His fastball sits 97-98 mph and frequently touches triple digits with startlingly little effort. He holds his velocity through his starts and has steadily become more durable every season. Marquez can dominate with his fastball alone and often does, but he is still working to improve his fastball command. He has long limbs and a thick midsection, so the Cubs have had to work with him to remain athletic in his delivery and get his upper and lower body synced up. Marquez throws his fastball for strikes when he’s on time in his delivery, but when he isn’t, it sails to his arm side or gets pulled into the righthanded batter’s box. Marquez previously threw a mid-80s slider as his breaking ball, but he began working on pitch design at the Cubs’ alternate site and separated out a slider and curveball. His slider now sits in the upper 80s with added power and tunnels well off of his fastball. His mid-80s, slurvy curveball is a change-of-pace option he can land for strikes. Marquez rounds out his arsenal with a hard 89-91 mph changeup that is getting more swings and misses every year. He sells his changeup with his arm speed and has gradually improved his command to make it a more consistent weapon. Marquez goes right after hitters and isn’t afraid to challenge them, but he still has spurts of wildness. He is continuing to work on landing his secondary pitches in the strike zone and maintaining consistent fastball command.
  
  THE FUTURE: Marquez features explosive, top-of-the-rotation stuff from the left side. Whether he continues to improve his control will determine whether he reaches that ceiling or ends up in the bullpen, where he would have closer potential.
• July, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: When the Cubs gave Marquez $600,000 in 2015, they did so with the idea that his fastball, which sat in the low 90s, had the potential to give hitters nightmares. They were right. Marquez hinted at his potential in an excellent 2018 season that ended with him ranked as the No. 3 prospect in the Northwest League. He showed up even stronger in 2019, which ended in his first appearance on the Top 100 Prospects.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Marquez’s signature pitch is his fastball, which sits in the upper 90s and regularly reaches triple digits. He peaked at 102 mph, which he reached 24 times in 2019. Marquez pairs the fastball with a spike slider in the low 80s that, at its best, tunnels with his fastball and features short, late snap. He also throws a changeup in the 89-91 mph range that he can use to get swings and misses. The pitch needs more consistency to reach its projection as an average major league offering. The Cubs point to a two-year process Marquez went through to get his arms and legs to sync up during his delivery as one of the main drivers of his improved ability to throw quality strikes. They also worked to get his arm stroke back to the longer, smoother version he showed as an amateur instead of the shorter, choppier one it had morphed into. Once those elements were in place, he needed to learn how to sequence. Instead of using his velocity to blow fastballs by hitters, he needed to have the intuition and confidence to throw his offspeed pitches in appropriate counts. That process was part of the reason the Cubs kept Marquez at low Class A South Bend until Aug. 6. Even with his raised profile, there are still plenty of ways Marquez can continue to improve. Maintaining command will be a continual process, especially given his size and long levers. He needs to continue to refine his changeup, especially considering that it is thrown with similar velocity as his breaking ball.
  
  THE FUTURE: For an organization that has struggled mightily to develop pitchers, Marquez represents hope. If he can maintain his delivery and bring his offspeed pitches forward, he could fit as a franchise starter at the front of a rotation. If not, his elite velocity from the left side could lead him into a closer’s role. Either role would be an outcome befitting the organization’s No. 1 prospect. SCOUTING GRADES Fastball: 80. Slider: 60. Changeup: 50. Control: 50. BA GRADE 60 Risk: High
• February, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: When the Cubs gave Marquez $600,000 in 2015, they did so with the idea that his fastball, which sat in the low 90s, had the potential to give hitters nightmares. They were right. Marquez hinted at his potential in an excellent 2018 season that ended with him ranked as the No. 3 prospect in the Northwest League. He showed up even stronger in 2019, which ended in his first appearance on the Top 100 Prospects.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Marquez's signature pitch is his fastball, which sits in the upper 90s and regularly reaches triple digits. He peaked at 102 mph, which he reached 24 times in 2019. Marquez pairs the fastball with a spike slider in the low 80s that, at its best, tunnels with his fastball and features short, late snap. He also throws a changeup in the 89-91 mph range that he can use to get swings and misses. The pitch needs more consistency to reach its projection as an average major league offering. The Cubs point to a two-year process Marquez went through to get his arms and legs to sync up during his delivery as one of the main drivers of his improved ability to throw quality strikes. They also worked to get his arm stroke back to the longer, smoother version he showed as an amateur instead of the shorter, choppier one it had morphed into. Once those elements were in place, he needed to learn how to sequence. Instead of using his velocity to blow fastballs by hitters, he needed to have the intuition and confidence to throw his offspeed pitches in appropriate counts. That process was part of the reason the Cubs kept Marquez at low Class A South Bend until Aug. 6. Even with his raised profile, there are still plenty of ways Marquez can continue to improve. Maintaining command will be a continual process, especially given his size and long levers. He needs to continue to refine his changeup, especially considering that it is thrown with similar velocity as his breaking ball.
  
  THE FUTURE: For an organization that has struggled mightily to develop pitchers, Marquez represents hope. If he can maintain his delivery and bring his offspeed pitches forward, he could fit as a franchise starter at the front of a rotation. If not, his elite velocity from the left side could lead him into a closer's role. Either role would be an outcome befitting the organization's No. 1 prospect.
• December, 2018 Scouting Report
  Even in today’s game, a lefthanded starter who can touch 100 mph is notable. Marquez is one the most electrifying southpaws in the minors, though he faces plenty of work ahead. At the end of the day, he has the pure stuff to be a solid major league starter—or dominating reliever. “The stuff has always been there,” a scout said. “He sits upper 90s, averaging nearly 96 (mph). His curveball has come on and he’s working on his changeup. He’s still working on consistency and growing into his body. He’s not fully coordinated yet and still mastering his mechanics.” Marquez will have his arm slot wander at times—he walked seven in 3.2 innings in one early-season start—but he also finished his Midwest League season by striking out 22 and allowing just two baserunners in his final 12 innings.