Executives doubt the Cubs will land top free agents. Find out which stars they believe are out of reach for Chicago this offseason.
The Chicago Cubs don’t appear to be favorites for many of the top free agents this winter. Well, that’s according to 16 anonymous MLB executives.
ESPN ran an article on Wednesday morning that highlighted where 16 executives believed players like Kyle Tucker, Dylan Cease, Framber Valdez, Tatsuya Imai, and Ranger Suarez would sign.
Spoiler alert: These 16 executives didn’t rank the Cubs high on any of these free agents.
They received zero votes to re-sign Tucker, zero votes to sign Valdez, one vote to sign Cease, zero votes to sign Suarez, and two votes to sign Imai in free agency. That means these executives don’t believe the Cubs will spend big money on these players this offseason.
Seeing the Cubs receive zero votes for Tucker is not entirely surprising, considering they will have to compete with teams like the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto Blue Jays, and even the Philadelphia Phillies to get the slugging outfielder.
Simply put, Chicago is not going to outspend any of those teams to get Tucker. The front office has never given out a $200 million contract in the team’s history, and that won’t change this offseason.
However, there is a real possibility that the team lands someone like Cease or Imai in free agency. Seeing the Cubs with votes for each of those players makes a ton of sense.
Although Shota Imanaga accepted the one-year qualifying offer, the Cubs still need a top-of-the-line starting pitcher in their rotation next year. Getting Cease or Imai would immediately fill that void. Both pitchers feel in play for the North Siders this offseason.
The Cubs were the team that drafted Cease back in 2014 before a trade sent him to the Chicago White Sox a few years later. But the front office is familiar with him, and insider Bruce Levine even said last month that the team would show interest in him this winter.
With Imai, the Cubs have such a huge Japanese presence that it wouldn’t be shocking to see them go after him. Even though the right-hander said he would prefer to sign with a team that has no current Japanese players, that could very well just be all talk right now.
It will definitely be an interesting next few weeks for the Cubs front office as they navigate free agency. If they can land Cease or Imai, that would be a massive win for this team. Some executives believe that could be a possibility.