The Chicago Cubs will have a chance to enhance their roster during the offseason. With several top-tier players potentially available, they have various options to build a competitive team.
The Cubs can either sign free agents or make trades. They need to make the right choices, especially after a few years of disappointment, including what might have been the most frustrating season in recent memory in 2024.
How can Chicago achieve this?
The solution is straightforward: they need to invest in their roster.
While spending money doesn’t guarantee success—something many teams have learned—it often puts teams in a better position than the Cubs are in now.
Corbin Burnes could be a potential target, but there might be an even better option in the American League East.
Gerrit Cole, the ace of the New York Yankees, could become available if he chooses to opt out of his contract. The Yankees have the option to extend his deal by adding $36 million and an extra year to his existing nine-year contract.
If both sides decide to part ways, Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller suggested several potential landing spots for Cole, with Chicago listed as a possibility.
“The Cubs also have a significant decision to make regarding Cody Bellinger, who is likely to exercise his $27.5 million option for another year. If that happens, their commitments for 2025 would already be close to $140 million. However, they might consider a major move to acquire Cole and potentially face a luxury-tax penalty for 2025 and 2026, before dealing with the upcoming free agency wave in the 2026-27 offseason, which includes Bellinger, Ian Happ, Seiya Suzuki, Jameson Taillon, Nico Hoerner, and Mike Tauchman.”
A right-handed pitcher would greatly benefit the Cubs’ rotation, which currently features two elite left-handers.
Acquiring what could be the best right-handed pitcher in baseball would address some of their rotation issues.
Although it seems unlikely Cole will leave the Yankees for 2025, if he does, the Cubs would eagerly welcome him. Adding a two-time Cy Young Award winner, along with other strategic moves, could make the Cubs the frontrunners in the NL Central.
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