Josiah Hartshorn’s name caused a stir on Sunday afternoon, but the Cubs’ top prospect wasn’t yanked from High-A South Bend because of a trade. The move came in the seventh inning, just a day before the deadline, and with Tarik Skubal already off the board, it was enough to set off speculation that Chicago might have been protecting a prized piece.
That talk never turned into a deal. Hartshorn stayed put while the Cubs made other moves from their farm system, and the 19-year-old later cleared up exactly why he was pulled.
Speaking to the South Bend Tribune, Hartshorn said the decision came down to effort on a play in the field.
"I didn't run hard; we had an expectation that was set beforehand, and I didn't follow it, and [Manager Daniel Wasinger] made the right decision to take me out of the game. It scared some people, but at the end of the day, it was my bad and it was performance based.
I wouldn't say I'm a guy who gives anything less than their best, and I gave less than my best on that play, and I can't do that. For this group of guys and the commitment we've all made together, that's unacceptable."
It was a blunt admission from a player who is still very much in the middle of his development. The good news for the Cubs is that Hartshorn didn’t treat the moment like a crisis. He understood why the hook came, and he owned it.
On the field, Hartshorn has done plenty to show why Chicago has been so reluctant to move him. He has posted a .930 OPS with 12 home runs in 55 games at High-A, production that suggests he’s already handled that level.
The next stop could be Double-A Knoxville before the season ends. And unless an offseason trade changes the picture, Hartshorn looks like a name that could be part of the Cubs’ outfield conversation by the end of the 2027 season. For now, the deadline itself offered a pretty clear signal: the Cubs believe in him for the long haul.
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