The team has some choices to make among arbitration-eligible players.
Yes, you remember correctly. There was just an article here two days ago on this very topic.
Since that article was published, though, there have been two changes made in the list of Cubs who are arbitration-eligible, and thus the team will have to make decisions about tendering them a contract or not for 2025.
Those two are Eli Morgan, acquired from the Guardians, and Matt Thaiss, acquired from the Angels. Both deals were completed on Wednesday.
Thus the list of Cubs players arb-eligible, who must be tendered a 2025 contract by 6 p.m. CT today, is as follows:
Nick Madrigal
Julian Merryweather
Eli Morgan
Isaac Paredes
Nate Pearson
Justin Steele
Mike Tauchman
Matt Thaiss
Keegan Thompson
Of those nine, four will definitely be tendered 2025 contracts: Morgan, Paredes, Pearson and Steele.
That leaves Madrigal, Merryweather, Tauchman, Thaiss and Thompson.
I went over these players in detail in the previous article, and I haven’t really changed my mind about any of them.
Regarding Thaiss, I think it’s entirely possible that the Cubs non-tender him — despite just acquiring him Wednesday — and re-sign him to a minor-league deal, perhaps a split contract of some kind. He doesn’t seem to me the kind of guy the team is going to want splitting time with Miguel Amaya. Rather, he’d be a “break glass in case of emergency” catcher.
Of the other four, I think the only one the Cubs will tender is Mike Tauchman. The others are eminently replaceable.
Assuming those things happen, the Cubs will then have four open spots on the 40-man roster for waiver claims, signings and trades. That seems about right.
We’ll find out for sure later this afternoon. And as is likely the case, we won’t find out until near or after the deadline.