Chicago Cubs: Three things Theo Epstein should accomplish this winter

There are many things that Theo Epstein needs to accomplish for the Chicago Cubs to compete in 2020, here are three of them.

Amidst a crucial offseason, there is no denying the Chicago Cubs need to accomplish many things with the ultimate goal of competing in 2020. Free agency is underway and the GM Meetings in Scottsdale, Arizona have come and gone. Now, everything will probably stay on the quiet side until the Winter Meetings begin in December.

However, that does not mean the Cubs are relieved of their duties by any means. Change needs to occur and the time for those changes is now. At the GM Meetings, Theo Epstein stressed a no-untouchables strategy as a means of showing that change is coming and the front office knows what needs to be done. However, the Cubs should consider keeping guys around: including outfielder Nicholas Castellanos and shortstop Javier Baez.

Castellanos’ joining the Cubs last season brought a much-needed spark to Chicago that will resonate with fans for years to come. Re-signing him could only be beneficial to the Cubs in the long run. Baez is another fan favorite who is essential to the team’s core and future prosperity. It is hard to imagine the possibility of the Cubs without him in upcoming years.

Castellanos and Baez are two pieces of the team that should remain stationary. However, change will definitely need to occur in other areas. One of these areas is the bullpen. Craig Kimbrel will probably enter 2020 at the team’s closer. Besides Kimbrel, there are many pieces of the bullpen entering free agency, insinuating the dire need for change. Clearly, Epstein and the front office have their work cut out for them.

Chicago Cubs: Extending superstar shortstop Javier Baez

Shortstop Javier Baez is undoubtedly one of the most popular baseball players both among the Chicago Cubs and in all of Major League Baseball. The Puerto Rican superstar has captured the hearts of baseball fans everywhere with his stellar offense and defense alike. Besides his talent on the field, he has also proven himself to be an icon off the field, as he has made efforts to represent both his place in the community and his heritage and background.

This past October, Baez made it to the cover of one of the most popular video games in today’s market – MLB: The Show 20. Baez has reached well-earned superstardom early on in his career, and it would be crazy for the Chicago Cubs to let him go. Needless to say, Baez is worthy of extending. Baez, 26, is set to make $9.3 million in 2020 but is only under club control until 2021. The bottom line is, the sooner the team locks Baez up, the better and it is good that contract discussions are already looming.

Over the course of just the 2019 season, Baez slashed .281/.316/.531 with 29 home runs, 38 doubles and 89 runs driven in. Besides his offense, Baez is one of the best, if not the best middle infielder defensively in all of the National League. These attributes are crucial to the team’s success in 2020 and beyond and the team extending Baez now would be an ultimate power move.

Chicago Cubs: Fixing a disheveled bullpen

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A persistent problem for the Chicago Cubs recently has been their bullpen. There is no denying that the bullpen struggled throughout the 2019 season and 2020 remains a mystery.

One aspect of the bullpen that doesn’t remain a mystery, is that Craig Kimbrel will probably take the role as the team’s closer, as mentioned earlier. However, three of the bullpen’s better arms have hti free agency.

Steve Cishek, Brandon Kintzler and Pedro Strop have all hit free agency this offseason which raises the question: how should the club go on from here? While the club has internal options including Duane Underwood Jr., the club could also look toward the free agent market.

Signing the likes of a reliever like Will Harris, or even a reunion with veteran and former Cub Hector Rondon would help improve this bullpen dilemma. Regardless of how the front office decided to handle the situation, it seems they would be building around Kimbrel.

In the end, there is really no easy way to fix such a disheveled bullpen. Even bringing up the most worthy guy for the job from the farm, and signing a worth free agent wouldn’t make the bullpen vendetta go away forever. However, the front office and Theo Epstein need to at least begin to examine their options and get a handle on this recurring issue as soon as they can this offseason.