Chicago Cubs 2026

#126      
Emerson Bigguns
Illiniaaron said:
So Shaw becomes the primary infield utility guy?
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This year… with Nico expiring, a lot can change in 27. Injuries are almost always a thing, so Matt will get his chances to earn a spot long-term. I thought he was too inconsistent last year for a contending team to pencil him in everyday next year.

Bregman will slot in well at 3rd. He raises our floor significantly. His production last year was very similar to what we got from Tucker. He won a GG at third in 2024, so more than solid over there. Good plate discipline. He’s been around a long time but he’s only 31, so he shouldn’t fall off a cliff anytime soon. Just a really consistently good, occasionally great player with a ton of post season experience.
 
#127      
Seppuku
Weird… I thought Cubs ownership was too cheap to spend money on top free agents. I’m waiting to hear if some the posters want them to sign another player to get into that magical top-5 payroll group.

Regarding the signing, I’m not sure I like this—I’ve said I don’t think most of the free agents were worth big contract. But, Bergman is probably the best fit at this point, so I’ll wait and see (and hope).

This team is rounding up nicely; should be able to win the division easily, and then make a big push in the playoffs.
 
#128      
tatupu70
Seppuku said:
Weird… I thought Cubs ownership was too cheap to spend money on top free agents. I’m waiting to hear if some the posters want them to sign another player to get into that magical top-5 payroll group.

Regarding the signing, I’m not sure I like this—I’ve said I don’t think most of the free agents were worth big contract. But, Bergman is probably the best fit at this point, so I’ll wait and see (and hope).

This team is rounding up nicely; should be able to win the division easily, and then make a big push in the playoffs.
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Well, unfortunately, all the players that I would have wanted them to sign aren't available any longer. But, yes, seeing as there is a pretty strong relationship between payroll and wins, I wish they would have spent money earlier and gotten to the top 5 payrolls where they belong based on their revenues
 
#129      
Emerson Bigguns
tatupu70 said:
Well, unfortunately, all the players that I would have wanted them to sign aren't available any longer. But, yes, seeing as there is a pretty strong relationship between payroll and wins, I wish they would have spent money earlier and gotten to the top 5 payrolls where they belong based on their revenues
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Examples? Who has a better track record and is a better fit than Bregman?
 
#131      
ChiefGritty
ChiefGritty said:
Scott Boras accepting a deal that both doesn't contain any opt-outs and which ends after his client's age 36 season represents a bit of a shift from him.

The Boras M.O. in recent years has been to either get his guys paid well past when they would project to be useful players or to have an immediate ability to opt-out and reenter free agency with major guaranteed money in the event of injury or bad performance.

I get the sense his clients are sick of the opt-out deals where they are constantly on the market playing on essentially one-year rollovers. Bregman is making a ton of money here, this is in no way a failure, and it aligns Boras' player with his team in a way those opt-out deals don't.
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A pretty fair alternative perspective tbh

https://twitter.com/x/status/2010200993754226878
 
#132      
champaignchris
Emerson Bigguns said:
This year… with Nico expiring, a lot can change in 27. Injuries are almost always a thing, so Matt will get his chances to earn a spot long-term. I thought he was too inconsistent last year for a contending team to pencil him in everyday next year.

Bregman will slot in well at 3rd. He raises our floor significantly. His production last year was very similar to what we got from Tucker. He won a GG at third in 2024, so more than solid over there. Good plate discipline. He’s been around a long time but he’s only 31, so he shouldn’t fall off a cliff anytime soon. Just a really consistently good, occasionally great player with a ton of post season experience.
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Yes. Shaw will be the super sub. He’ll probably get a start about every 8-10 games to let Hoerner, Bregman or Swanson DH when they need a break from the field. He’ll have the chance to pick up some ABs against lefties as DH. Shouldn’t be too hard to find him 200-ish at bats. If he shows consistency at the plate, he’ll be the presumptive starting 2B in 27.
 
#133      
DeonThomas
champaignchris said:
Yes. Shaw will be the super sub. He’ll probably get a start about every 8-10 games to let Hoerner, Bregman or Swanson DH when they need a break from the field. He’ll have the chance to pick up some ABs against lefties as DH. Shouldn’t be too hard to find him 200-ish at bats. If he shows consistency at the plate, he’ll be the presumptive starting 2B in 27.
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Assuming Counsell gives him some OF innings on top of 2B/SS/3B/DH, I'm predicting nearly 350-400 AB's and a start every 4-5 days. I watched nearly every inning of every game last season and Shaw was really strong in the 2nd half of the year. I have extreme confidence that he becomes our everyday 2B in 2027.
 
#134      
ChiefGritty
DeonThomas said:
Assuming Counsell gives him some OF innings on top of 2B/SS/3B/DH, I'm predicting nearly 350-400 AB's and a start every 4-5 days. I watched nearly every inning of every game last season and Shaw was really strong in the 2nd half of the year. I have extreme confidence that he becomes our everyday 2B in 2027.
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Shaw's most recent experience in the outfield was 9 games in left as a 19 year old freshman at Maryland.

This is a conundrum, there's no question.

Seiya wants to play RF everyday, but the positive reputation for his defense from Japan really did not carry over as hoped and he did great as a DH.

This is why I thought Bellinger made more sense than Bregman.
 
#135      
MikeTisdale
ChiefGritty said:
Scott Boras accepting a deal that both doesn't contain any opt-outs and which ends after his client's age 36 season represents a bit of a shift from him.

The Boras M.O. in recent years has been to either get his guys paid well past when they would project to be useful players or to have an immediate ability to opt-out and reenter free agency with major guaranteed money in the event of injury or bad performance.

I get the sense his clients are sick of the opt-out deals where they are constantly on the market playing on essentially one-year rollovers. Bregman is making a ton of money here, this is in no way a failure, and it aligns Boras' player with his team in a way those opt-out deals don't.
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Opt outs on the player side are valuable - IE the Cubs weren't giving him those dollars and years if there was an opt out after 2 or 3 years.

Makes sense a guy like Bregman just wants to max value through his age 36 season - he worked his opt out perfectly with the Red Sox deal and was maybe gun-shy going through FA again after playing through injury the second half of last year.

He's not an elite bat guy (just very good) - the odds of him opting out after say an age 32 or 33 season and beating 4yr $130MM or 3yr $97.5MM have to be very low. Which is why it probably made sense on the Boras side as well - they know how to get max value.
 
#136      
EyeoftheIllini
DeonThomas said:
Assuming Counsell gives him some OF innings on top of 2B/SS/3B/DH, I'm predicting nearly 350-400 AB's and a start every 4-5 days. I watched nearly every inning of every game last season and Shaw was really strong in the 2nd half of the year. I have extreme confidence that he becomes our everyday 2B in 2027.
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Not sure if he’ll see much time in OF, but I think he’ll see more than 20 starts, which is what one every 8-10 games would be. I think he’ll get 2-3 starts a week as long as he’s being at least somewhat productive at the plate.
 
#137      
EyeoftheIllini
ChiefGritty said:
Shaw's most recent experience in the outfield was 9 games in left as a 19 year old freshman at Maryland.

This is a conundrum, there's no question.

Seiya wants to play RF everyday, but the positive reputation for his defense from Japan really did not carry over as hoped and he did great as a DH.

This is why I thought Bellinger made more sense than Bregman.
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I think there are a couple reasons they like Bregman more than Bellinger or Tucker, with the big one being money. Saw report that Yankees offered 5 years with no deferred money. Can’t remember exact money number, but was similar to what Bregman got from Cubs. He wants 7 years. You know Tucker wants 7 years. Only 5 years for Bregman I think was important to Cubs.

The second reason is they seem to be more confident in Moises’s offensive potential than Shaw’s. And if you don’t open up DH for him, he will be greatly underutilized.
 
#138      
ChiefGritty
EyeoftheIllini said:
Can’t remember exact money number, but was similar to what Bregman got from Cubs. He wants 7 years. You know Tucker wants 7 years. Only 5 years for Bregman I think was important to Cubs.
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Just to say it out loud, 7 years for Tucker pays him until age 35 whereas 5 years for Bregman pays him until age 36.
 
#140      
IanKEvans2
EyeoftheIllini said:
I think there are a couple reasons they like Bregman more than Bellinger or Tucker, with the big one being money. Saw report that Yankees offered 5 years with no deferred money. Can’t remember exact money number, but was similar to what Bregman got from Cubs. He wants 7 years. You know Tucker wants 7 years. Only 5 years for Bregman I think was important to Cubs.

The second reason is they seem to be more confident in Moises’s offensive potential than Shaw’s. And if you don’t open up DH for him, he will be greatly underutilized.
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Ballesteros' bat has huge potential, and I'm not as big a fan of Shaw as many on here are. Would love to see Shaw traded [eventually] and Nico extended.
 
#141      
EyeoftheIllini
ChiefGritty said:
Just to say it out loud, 7 years for Tucker pays him until age 35 whereas 5 years for Bregman pays him until age 36.
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Just to say it out loud, Cubs did not want to sign any of the top FAs available for 7 years.

I’m well aware of the ages of the two players. All things being equal, I’d prefer Tucker. All things aren’t equal though. I think Bregman is the better fit for this team. I think Bregman taking deferred money makes it easier to get under the luxury in 2027, and we know Cubs aren’t interested in exceeding luxury tax two yeas in a row.
 
#143      
EyeoftheIllini
IanKEvans2 said:
Ballesteros' bat has huge potential, and I'm not as big a fan of Shaw as many on here are. Would love to see Shaw traded [eventually] and Nico extended.
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I like Shaw too, but like I said if Cubs didn’t open up DH for Moises, he’s not seeing a lot of time. Barely passable at catcher, too short for 1B (and have Busch) and can’t play OF. In the limited time he did see, Moises slashed 298/.394/.474/.868. I think Shaw only exceeded any one of those once (slugging) in any of the last 3 months. Just too much potential with Moises and can still find plenty of ABs for Shaw even with Bregman.
 
#145      
Illiniaaron
IanKEvans2 said:
Ballesteros' bat has huge potential, and I'm not as big a fan of Shaw as many on here are. Would love to see Shaw traded [eventually] and Nico extended.
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I thought Shaw had a good 4 week stretch or so but that was sandwiched between the before and after of a lot of very weak contact.
 
#146      
Emerson Bigguns
ChiefGritty said:
Just to say it out loud, 7 years for Tucker pays him until age 35 whereas 5 years for Bregman pays him until age 36.
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True, but I'd be surprised if Tucker's AAV isn't significantly higher than Bregman's. I also don't think they are as worried about age or regression as much as they are about collective bargaining, and they don't want to be tied to anything for very long after this one expires. (Speaking of long-term albatrosses, they owe Jason Heyward 5 million this year...)If anyone is going to get a stupid contract when option start to dwindle, it's Tucker. I don't think the Cubs wanted to hang in the stare down any longer and end up a bat short.

Generally speaking, it's usually easier to find a productive outfielder than a productive infielder.

There are in house options down the line.

Alcantara is a specimen. He could definitely make a leap.

Ethan Conrad is a big left-handed hitting prospect that we took #17 overall out of Wake Forest last year. Does everything well. I wouldn't be surprised if he moves quickly.

Keeping Happ and/or Suzuki also isn't out of the question if those guys can't cut it or someone else doesn't emerge. They won't likely be in line for big raises. Some good OF's will be available next summer too...
 
#147      
tatupu70
Emerson Bigguns said:
Examples? Who has a better track record and is a better fit than Bregman?
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Tucker definitely has a better track record and is younger, but my comment is responding the poster that asked if the Cubs should continue to add after Bregman and who that should be.
 
#149      
Emerson Bigguns
MikeTisdale said:
Giants Aggressively Pursuing Second Base Upgrade

Ricketts really sitting there thinking "alright people really seemed to like that Bergman signing, we're finally beating the boos for being cheap. Let's go ahead and offset that 4 win signing by trading our 4 win 2b, see if anybody notices."
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There's been a ton of chatter around Nico all off-season because he will be a FA after the season. I don't think the Cubs should make him untouchable, but the price for touching should be sky high... as in MLB ready studs.

We spent pretty big on Bregman. (like the big boys do) We can't bellyache about how "well run" the Brewers are while being super precious about our guys, too. If Nico were a Brewer he'd already be out the door. Continuingly losing good players for nothing more than a compensatory pick isn't an ideal strategy.

They either need to commit significant resources into keeping him, or trade him. I could see it going any of the three ways, but keeping him and allowing him to walk after the season is by far the worst option.
 
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