3 things Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer must to do keep his job

2. Upgrade the lineup

The other obvious issue is the fact that the Cubs lineup lacks a star hitter. This lack of talent results in the team being unable to dig itself out of offensive ruts, which have become prevalent over the last couple of seasons. It's a lot harder to overcome those tough stretches when you don't have a rock in the lineup. The truth is, the Cubs have a lot of solid hitters but they do not have an elite bat.

Adding to the lineup will be hard given the opt-outs Hoyer has dished out and his offseason approach will depend a lot on Cody Bellinger's decision. Reports have swung both ways on that front, and it seems like nobody will really know until the opt-out deadline five days after the conclusion of the World Series. The team is honestly in a better position to add if Bellinger walks away because a substantial amount of at-bats will become available and $27 million will come off the 2025 payroll.

The dream scenario is that Hoyer pursues someone like Pete Alonso, Teoscar Hernandez or even Juan Soto. But given how Hoyer has done things in the past, it would be foolish to expect a signing of this caliber given his unwillingness to make substantial long-term financial commitments.

Even if Bellinger stays with the team, Hoyer needs to figure out a creative way to inject some consistency into the lineup a la the Michael Busch trade.