2 Cubs who will survive the non-tender roster crunch but are on borrowed time

The non-tender deadline is next up for the Chicago Cubs, as they must decide by Friday night to tender contracts to any of their four arbitration-eligible players. The players include Justin Steele, Javier Assad, Eli Morgan, and Reese McGuire. Considering a bulk of their roster is either on a guaranteed contract or still in the pre-arbitration phase of their contract, it should be a straightforward day for the Cubs.

The non-tender deadline day is always eventful across Major League Baseball, considering teams often look to complete trades rather than losing an arbitration-eligible player for nothing. For reference, ESPN's Jeff Passan reports that the Texas Rangers are trying to trade Adolis Garcia and Jonah Heim before Friday night, avoiding the risk of non-tendering them and having nothing to gain from it besides payroll space.

Cubs players who will survive the non-tender roster crunch but are on borrowed time

The decisions the Cubs are facing seem like they are clear. Steele, when healthy, had trended toward being a top-of-the-rotation arm, and his return in 2026 is deeply needed for the rotation. Elsewhere, assuming Miguel Amaya's health, it doesn't make much sense for the Cubs to tender a contract to McGuire.

Javier Assad

Think back to a Cubs' injury update during the 2025 season, and Assad was listed. An oblique injury in spring training wiped out most of the year for Assad, who returned to the Major League team in August and was used as an up-and-down arm to close out the season.

While the Cubs seem to be aware of the fact that Assad was vastly outpitching his underlying metrics, the two things that are working in the 28-year-old's favor are that he has two minor league options remaining and the Cubs have a need for pitching depth. Subtracting from the pitching depth they already have at the moment doesn't make that much sense for the Cubs.

Eli Morgan

Despite missing most of the 2025 season with his own injury, Eli Morgan seems to be a part of the Cubs' initial plan for their bullpen turnover this offseason. Morgan was awful in his initial run with the Cubs, posting a 12.27 ERA in 7 appearances to open the season. The Cubs, however, believe his struggles were tied to an elbow injury, and when healthy, he could be the reliever who posted a 1.93 ERA with the Cleveland Guardians in 2024.

Like Assad, what works in Morgan's favor is that he maintained his minor-league option for 2026. That flexibility will likely come in handy for the Cubs as they map out their pitching staff.