3 under-the-radar Cubs spring training storylines to watch

If the Chicago Cubs pull off a last-minute signing of Alex Bregman, camp in Mesa will feel more like a reunion of former Houston Astros players than anything. Bregman could join former teammates Kyle Tucker and Ryan Pressly as a trio at the center of a new-look team looking to play postseason baseball for the first time in a full season since 2018.

Even if Bregman lands elsewhere, there are going to be a lot of eyes on Tucker and Pressly - not to mention returning standouts like Shota Imanaga, Justin Steele and Ian Happ. But there's a lot more to watch this spring than just the big names as second-year Cubs manager Craig Counsell looks to shape the roster to his liking and take aim at the 90-win threshold he and others talked about at the end of last season.

Here are three storylines we'll be keeping an eye on as pitchers and catchers report next week - earlier than any other big-league team.

1) The health of Ben Brown and Cade Horton and the plans the Cubs have for both

For decades, the Cubs' seeming inability to develop big-league pitching haunted them, only overcome during the team's championship window in the middle of the last decade by spending on veteran free agents.

Ben Brown and Cade Horton represent two of the most promising pitching prospects the team has had in years, but both come into spring training facing some health-related questions. Brown missed a huge chunk of the 2024 season due to a lingering, mysterious neck injury after a strong showing early in the year. He's reportedly cleared and back at 100 percent, but his health is definitely something to keep tabs on as he ramps up in Arizona over the next six weeks.

Horton also missed major time last year, making just nine starts between Double- and Triple-A. He didn't pitch in a game after suffering a subscapular strain and then experiencing setbacks in recovery, cutting what began as a promising season short. Last spring, there was speculation that Horton could make his MLB debut at some point - and we'll likely hear a similar refrain this year.

2) How the catching workload will be distributed between Carson Kelly and Miguel Amaya

We knew the Cubs were going to bring in a veteran catcher this offseason, and, although it took longer than some would have liked, they wound up signing former second-rounder Carson Kelly to a two-year, $11.5 million deal, solidifying the team's catching situation.

Miguel Amaya has a lot to prove on the heels of a tale-of-two-halves sort of season, where he was a borderline DFA candidate for much of the first half before turning it on in a big way as the summer went on. Chicago is still hoping he can establish himself behind the plate, but the addition of Kelly will keep them from banking so heavily on his success in 2025.

Kelly split last year between the Detroit Tigers and Texas Rangers, appearing in 91 games. A platoon situation seems inevitable given each player's respective splits (Amaya has been stronger against right-handers, Kelly against southpaws) - but this is still an area of the roster to watch as Cactus League games get started and we see them work with the revamped pitching staff.

3) Getting our first glimpse at rotation newcomer Matthew Boyd

The Cubs could still make another rotation addition. They've been connected recently to Dylan Cease and a Bregman signing could kick off a domino-like effect on the roster. But if this is the group, no one has a chance to make their presence felt in quite the same way as left-hander Matthew Boyd.

Chicago pounced early in the offseason, signing Boyd to a stronger-than-expected two-year, $29 million deal. Boyd was stellar when he was healthy last year, but he made just eight regular-season starts and a trio of excellent postseason appearances. He hasn't made 20 starts or hit 100 innings since 2019, so it's certainly a gamble expecting him to be a meaningful contributor.

If - and, again, that's a big if - he's healthy and can pitch as he did late last year with Cleveland, the outlook of the rotation dramatically improves. But he's going to be under a microscope this spring as fans get their first look at him and, for better or worse, form their initial first impressions.