The 24-year-old catching prospect, previously unranked, has become the talk of the Arizona Fall League, hitting a massive playoff home run and posting some of the best offensive stats on the circuit.
The Chicago Cubs have a new “player to watch.” Catching prospect Owen Ayers continues to shine in the Arizona Fall League (AFL), capping off a dominant season with a 426-foot home run in the league’s semi-final game on Wednesday.
The three-run “bomb,” which left the bat at 107.1 mph, put his Mesa Solar Sox team ahead and served as a massive exclamation point on a breakout performance that has put him squarely on the Cubs’ organizational map.
Ayers, a 19th-round pick in 2024 out of Marshall University, entered the fall as a relative unknown. He had a “middling” 2025 regular season at Single-A Myrtle Beach, hitting .238 and missing more than half the season on the injured list.
But in Arizona, he has transformed, becoming one of the most dominant hitters in the entire league.
A Dominant AFL Performance
Ayers’ “impressive stats” go far beyond one home run. He has been an on-base machine, forcing his way into the “top rising stars” conversation by ranking near the top of the AFL in almost every major offensive category:
- On-Base Percentage (OBP): .539 (2nd in AFL)
- Walks: 22 (1st in AFL)
- Batting Average: .379 (4th in AFL)
- On-Base Plus Slugging (OPS): 1.130 (7th in AFL)
- Slugging Percentage: .591 (8th in AFL)
For an unranked prospect to lead the entire league in walks while also hitting for elite power and average has made him the “talk of the league,” according to multiple prospect reports.
While the Cubs’ big-league club is currently set at catcher with Carson Kelly, Ayers’ explosive performance has ensured he will not be starting 2026 in Single-A. He has played his way into consideration for a Double-A spot and cemented his status as one of the most exciting, unexpected breakouts in the Cubs’ farm system.
