DALLAS — As the baseball world descends upon the Winter Meetings waiting for the Juan Soto sweepstakes to come to a close, the Chicago Cubs remain content doing their offseason work well below the top tier of free agency. It isn’t just fans waiting for Soto’s ultimate destination. Front-office members, agents and members of the media strolled through the lobby of the Hilton Anatole Hotel hoping for the biggest news of the offseason to finally arrive.
While the Cubs aren’t in the mix, Soto’s impending signing is critical for them. The Cubs have positioned Cody Bellinger as a fallback for any team that may miss out on Soto. Willy Adames heading to San Francisco helps the Cubs and if Teoscar Hernández ends up back with the Los Angeles Dodgers, that should as well. It would drop two potential bats for teams who don’t land Soto with both going to teams that likely weren’t going to pursue Bellinger. Bellinger’s contract is giving teams around the league pause, particularly the chance of him opting into the final year, but it shouldn’t be viewed as making a trade unlikely.
With the price of free agents jumping to a level some weren’t expecting, Bellinger’s $27.5 million deal (with either a $5 million buyout or $25 million player option for 2026) doesn’t look as unwieldy. Yes, there is risk considering his injury history and performance from 2020-2022, but his ability to play all three outfield positions and first base while hitting from the left side makes him potentially valuable to multiple teams.
A lot of what the Cubs can and will do hinges on the Bellinger situation. As reported by The Athletic last week, the Cubs remain interested in adding starting pitching. However, with costs skyrocketing in that market, doing so via free agency just doesn’t seem likely. That was a big reason they jumped on signing Matthew Boyd, along with the fact that they like his projections and have had interest in him in the past.
Perhaps later in the offseason when prices drop they’ll get back into the free agency side of things and pick from whoever may be left. One starter the Cubs have shown some interest in is Jack Flaherty, but that’s only if his cost doesn’t get too elevated, and again, they may have to circle back later if he lingers on the market.
Despite the addition of Matt Thaiss, adding a viable catcher who can work in a timeshare with Miguel Amaya is a priority. Danny Jansen was an option the Cubs pursued, but ultimately the veteran chose the one-year, $8.5 million deal offered by Tampa Bay where he’ll be the starter. The team doggedly pursued an upgrade at the position at this past summer’s trade deadline but were rebuffed in their attempts.
Again this winter, they’re finding it similarly difficult to find a regular starter at catcher via trade. Hardly a surprise considering the scarcity of talent at the position and the desire teams have to cling to their impactful catchers. The most likely path appears to be adding via free agency and with Jansen and Kyle Higashioka both off the market, the options are dwindling, with Carson Kelly the most obvious remaining free-agent backstop.
There have been rumors that the Cubs would be willing to trade Seiya Suzuki, but that only appears to be an option if Bellinger isn’t moved. For now, there seems to be real interest in Bellinger, which makes a Suzuki trade unlikely.
One thing is clear, the Cubs know they have to improve upon their back-to-back 83-win campaigns. That they haven’t been aggressive at the top of the market doesn’t mean they aren’t aware of that fact. Finding ways to creatively improve and pursuing any potential move, including via trade, that could up their win total is their focus. They may not be the story of the Winter Meetings, but the expectation is that the Cubs will be much more active this time around than they were last year.
(Photo of Cody Bellinger: Quinn Harris / Getty Images)
