5 areas the Cubs still must address this offseason | Chicago Cubs News

The Cubs spun a major move to improve their roster last week by trading for Kyle Tucker.

It stands as potentially the most impactful deal the team has made since the days of the Jon Lester and Ben Zobrist signings back in 2014-15.

The Cubs aren’t hanging their hats on just that one move, however. They’ve been busy this offseason, adding a pair of relievers (Eli Morgan, Rob Zastryzny), a starter (Matthew Boyd), two new catchers (Carson Kelly, Matt Thaiss) and selected an infielder in the Rule 5 Draft (Gage Workman).

And even with all that done before the holidays, there is still more to do for Jed Hoyer’s front office.

Here are a few moves we’re still expecting from the Cubs this winter:

1. Sort through the outfield logjam

Tucker’s arrival is huge in that it gives the Cubs a bonafide star – a Top 10 bat in baseball.

But it also creates a conflict on the roster – what will the Cubs do with all their outfielders?

[WATCH: Analyzing the Kyle Tucker trade]

In addition to Tucker, the Cubs also have Cody Bellinger, Seiya Suzuki, Ian Happ and Pete Crow-Armstrong on their roster plus young outfielder Alexander Canario is out of minor-league options. There is also prospect Owen Caissie, who was added to the 40-man roster this winter, and Kevin Alcántara who could potentially factor into the mix.

The simple answer is: A trade is likely coming. Bellinger’s name has been bandied about trade rumors all offseason – even before the Tucker deal – and now Suzuki is included as a possible name on the move if he waives his no-trade clause.

Bellinger can play first base and the DH spot also is open to rotate players. But the Cubs liked Michael Busch’s progress at first base during his strong rookie season and it seems unlikely they would shift him to third base to accommodate Bellinger full-time at first.

Expect a trade of either Bellinger or Suzuki, possibly before the Christmas holiday comes along.

2. Address the bullpen

Hoyer acknowledged at the outset of the offseason that he felt the Cubs front office should have added more depth to the bullpen prior to the 2024 season.

While Morgan and Zastryzny are a good start, this current Cubs relief corps is still very inexperienced – particularly at the back end.

As it stands right now, Porter Hodge would likely be the closer with Tyson Miller, Nate Pearson and Morgan as setup options. Hodge, Miller and Pearson all had strong seasons with the Cubs in 2024 but they don’t have long track records as relievers, let alone in high-leverage moments in the big leagues.

[MORE: As trade rumors swirl around Cubs, where does Cody Bellinger fit in?]

The Cubs would benefit from adding a veteran or two with experience at the back end of games to help provide stability to the group.

They also need some depth, as injuries and ineffectiveness in the bullpen was a big reason for early-season struggles in 2024.

The Cubs will look to add to the bullpen as the offseason wears on – whether via trade or free agency.

3. Find an answer at third base

As discussed above, the roster right now leans heavy towards outfielders. That leaves a hole at third base with Isaac Paredes a main piece in the return for Tucker.

The Cubs have plenty of options to fill the position in-house and solutions always exist outside the organization as well (trade, free agency).

[READ: A glimpse at the Cubs lineup with Kyle Tucker in the mix]

With two months left before pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training, Hoyer and Co. are sorting through other issues on the roster right now but they will have to come up with an answer at third base.

Internal options include prospects Matt Shaw and James Triantos – both players have had success in the upper minors and look to be knocking on the door of the big leagues. However, both players have more experience at other positions on the infield and their defense at third base may not be MLB-ready yet.

Workman, the team’s Rule 5 pick, is in a similar boat. But unlike Shaw and Triantos, Workman has not even played in Triple-A yet.

By virtue of the Rule 5 parameters, Workman will need to be on the Opening Day roster so spring camp could be vital to see what he is capable of at the hot corner.

The Cubs also have utility player Miles Mastrobuoni and young infielder Benjamin Cowles (acquired in the Mark Leiter Jr. trade last summer) on the 40-man roster.

Of course, there is also always the option of shifting players around the diamond. Busch has some experience at third base, as does Nico Hoerner. Neither would be “Plan A” as they both provide very good defense at their current positions (first base and second base, respectively).

Free agent options at third base include Yoán Moncada and Brandon Drury, but the Cubs are more likely to fill the hole with any of the internal options.

It will be exciting for Cubs fans to see top prospects Shaw and Triantos get an opportunity in the big leagues, if that’s how this all ends up playing out.

4. Add more starting depth

The Cubs know how important rotation depth is and just dealt away one of their starting options (Hayden Wesneski) in the Tucker deal.

The team had 8 different players make at least 2 starts in 2024 and 2023 and they were relatively lucky in terms of pitcher health in that span. For comparison, the Dodgers had 14 different players make at least 2 starts for them in 2024 en route to a World Series championship.

The Cubs are in a great spot with their rotation right now:

Shota Imanaga
Justin Steele
Jameson Taillon
Matthew Boyd
Javier Assad

Internal depth includes Jordan Wicks, Ben Brown and prospect Cade Horton, plus a group of pitchers (Keegan Thompson, Caleb Kilian, Pearson) who have recent experience as either starters or multi-inning relievers.

But 2024 was also a perfect example of why the Cubs want to build up their depth as much as possible. Wicks, Brown and Horton all missed at least 3 months of the season due to injury.

With Wesneski now in Texas, the Cubs will surely add at least 1 depth option for the rotation this winter and likely several.

5. Figure out the bench situation

The Cubs have more important fish to fry right now with their position player group but they will need to have a legitimate bench come together before Opening Day.

It will most likely get sorted out during Spring Training but the Cubs did part ways with some valuable bench/role players this offseason already (Mike Tauchman, Nick Madrigal, Patrick Wisdom, Christian Bethancourt).

They upgraded at catcher with the Kelly signing and it’s possible they end up carrying 3 catchers since Thaiss can also play other positions (he has experience at third, first, second and outfield in the majors).

Workman will have to be on the big-league roster or else optioned back to the Tigers so that likely secures another bench role.

As we stated before, Canario is out of options, so he could fill another spot as a right-handed power bat that manager Craig Counsell can utilize in the right matchups.

Mastrobuoni, Cowles and Luis Vázquez are other infield options who can play multiple positions and fill out the bench.

Ultimately, it will come down to how the Cubs sort through the outfield puzzle before we start to see the bench take shape.