Chicago Cubs: Predictions for the top 5 remaining free agents

Chicago Cubs: I could be the best under-the-radar signing of your offseason

Aren’t those Astros throwbacks awesome? Houston must think so if they’re using them as alternate jerseys.  Unfortunately, they must not think as highly of their utility guy, Marwin Gonzalez, as they haven’t re-signed him yet, leaving him to round out the “best of” free agent lists as we head into February (or maybe that’s just the Scott Boras effect at play).

Gonzalez is not the best hitter, and he’s not the best fielder.  However, he does a little bit of everything and is a solid player who played eight different positions last season for the Astros.  If Ben Zobrist is the Cubs’ swiss-army knife, “Margo” certainly played that role for the ‘Stros.

However, he’s 29; Ben Zobrist is 37, going on 38. Gonzalez could be looking to play every day and play the same position on a regular basis. Boras will no doubt be playing that card and looking for gobs of cash for his client, however, he still has some guys who don’t have deals yet, as astute readers can tell just from this top five list. Boras supposedly met with at least 14 teams regarding their interest in Gonzalez, and that was by the middle of November.

Even though he’s much younger, Gonzalez isn’t Zobrist, and I highly doubt he gets the same kind of deal Zobrist got at age 34 when he joined the Cubs. While there are many teams in play for Gonzalez, it’s doubtful any of them will want to give him anything approaching the four-year/$56 million deal the Cubs’ “Mr. Swiss-Army” signed in 2015.

The Padres, Brewers, Twins, Phillies or the Astros are possible landing spots at this point, but let’s face it – he belongs back with Houston, just like teammate Dallas Keuchel.  They know how valuable “Margo” is and he’s already an integral part of their clubhouse and organization.