The Chicago Cubs have done well this offseason with acquiring the necessary talent to be better than they were last year by adding superstar outfielder Kyle Tucker to be the face of the Cubs, but are they done adding?
President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer indicated on a recent podcast the plans for the Cubs for the rest of this offseason and what the plan will be to further improve the roster.
The acquisitions so far
The biggest acquisition the Cubs have made so far was trading for superstar outfielder Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros in which they sent third baseman Isaac Paredes, prospect Cam Smith, and right-handed pitcher Hayden Wesneski. The Cubs also further supplemented their depth at the catchers’ position by adding Carson Kelly on a two-year deal to pair with Miguel Amaya. The Cubs also added veteran catcher Carlos Pérez to a minor league deal to help top prospect Moisés Ballesteros improve his defensive ability.
The Cubs also added some decent arms to both their bullpen and to be depth pieces for the starting rotation. For the bullpen, the Cubs brought in former Minnesota Twins reliever and veteran left-hander Caleb Thielbar to be a lefty option out of the bullpen. The Cubs also added veteran relievers Ben Heller and Phil Bickford on minor league deals with spring training invites to be depth pieces in the pen.
The Cubs also went out and signed veteran swingman Colin Rea to be a potential sixth starter in their rotation. To make room for Rea on the 40-man roster the Cubs designated top prospect Michael Arias for assignment, who was later then traded to the New York Yankees for cash considerations.
Jed Hoyer indicates what the rest of the Chicago Cubs’ plans will be for the offseason
In a recent appearance on David Kaplan’s “The REKAP” #Takethat YouTube Channel the Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer sat down and gave some insight on what the rest of the Cubs offseason would look like. Hoyer indicated that the Cub’s main focus will be to add to both the bench and the bullpen. With Hoyer saying on the podcast:
“Mostly focused right now on bench and bullpen, just trying to supplement the roster as much as we can. I feel good about our team but there’s obviously ways to improve,” Hoyer said. He later added that the “bullpen’s been probably the area we’ve been focused on most in free agency. I feel like we’re trying to make sure we upgrade our bench. Adding a veteran presence to our bench would be good.”
This tracks with the Cubs looking to add another late-inning reliever to pair with their emerging closer Porter Hodge and Tyson Miller.
The Cubs have been linked to free agent relievers Kirby Yates, Carlos Estevez, and Tannar Scott as possible options to be that late-inning guy, or to possibly be their closer. Signing any one of these guys would greatly upgrade the Cubs bullpen which has been a problem for them in recent years.
Adding to the bench would make sense for the Cubs to do with needs at both first and third base. The Cubs have expressed their desire to add another veteran who can play either first or third base. Adding said player would serve as a backup for Michael Busch the current starter at first base or to pair with top prospect Matt Shaw who could be the Cubs starting third basemen come Opening Day.
What happens from here for the Chicago Cubs?
The Cubs have a roster that can compete with some of the best in baseball if they just make a few more additions this offseason. Adding more depth to both the bullpen and bench is important, but also adding another top-of-the-rotation type starter is essential for the Cubs to have success. If they can do that on top of bringing in another player or two to fill out the bench and the pen, then the Cubs could be looking at a successful start to the season.
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