Cubs Could Do 9-Figure SP Deal While Remaining Cautious with Bullpen Additions

This is pretty redundant because we’ve been saying literally the exact same things as the beat writers in San Antonio for several weeks now, but it’s not like there’s much else to cover. Multiple outlets have reiterated Jed Hoyer’s desire to add to the top of the rotation and the bullpen while also upgrading behind the plate, and now we’re getting a clearer picture of the specifics.

“I was really impressed by our pitching last year,” Hoyer told reporters. “But we had a lot more injuries than expected. Our starting pitching kind of hung in there for us.”

The Cubs have found a lot of value in the mid-range of starting pitchers, but it may be time to splurge again as they have in the past for Jon Lester and Yu Darvish. Though they probably aren’t going to be in the running to land Corbin Burnes, word from Sahadev Sharma and Patrick Mooney is that “closing a nine-figure deal for a pitcher would not be unreasonable.”

The most likely candidates for such a contract figure to be Max Fried and Blake Snell, though both are West Coast guys who might require a little extra juice to come to Chicago. Spending bigger on a starter could mean remaining frugal when it comes to bullpen additions. If there’s anything Hoyer hates more than the idea of a monster contract, it’s giving a reliever more than two guaranteed years.

“How do you allocate those dollars as safely as you can?” he said during the GM Meetings. “The bullpen dollars are more volatile. You’re more likely to find impact in the bullpen in minor-league free agency or in a small trade or a waiver claim.”

I still think they’ll end up with a bigger bullpen signing than we’re used to seeing, it’s probably just a matter of which pitcher in that upper range is willing to accept two years. That could rule out Clay Holmes and Carlos Estévez, but A.J. Minter has been brought up in connection to the Cubs and his injury history will limit the duration of his next deal.

Catcher is another spot where Hoyer is looking to upgrade, even if it’s just getting a veteran to share the load with Miguel Amaya. It’s interesting to note that Hoyer was seen chatting with Mariners GM Jerry DiPoto, who currently has Cal Raleigh on his roster. A deal like that isn’t getting done in San Antonio, but maybe bookmark it.

As for other moves, it seems like they’ll indeed look to improve around the margins. Nico Hoerner is expected to make a full recovery and shouldn’t miss too much time, allowing the Cubs to give Matt Shaw or James Triantos a shot rather than signing a veteran to handle those early reps. Their full outfielders and wealth of prospects waiting in the wings means paying big for a bat probably isn’t in the cards either.

I apologize to those who’ve been following along because this is all very boring and repetitive. The worst part is that I can’t promise it’ll get much more interesting over the next few months. While I do think Hoyer may have one big signing and a potential significant trade up his sleeve, I don’t believe we’ll be knocked flat by anything he does this offseason.

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