A past Cubs bullpen target comes off the board as fans await Jed Hoyer's next move

The Chicago Cubs pounced quickly, signing Phil Maton to a two-year deal the week of Thanksgiving, giving Jed Hoyer his first multi-year deal with a reliever since Craig Kimbrel in 2019. Some wondered if that was a sign of things to come as the club looks to reload its bullpen, but so far, nothing has come to fruition.

This week saw the offseason's marquee free-agent reliever, Edwin Diaz, spur the Mets to sign a three-year deal with the reigning World Series champion Dodgers, and Devin Williams will presumably take his place handling closing duties at Citi Field after signing a three-year, $51 million deal with New York in recent weeks.

The top remaining free-agent relief options include Robert Suarez and old friend Brad Keller, after another name Cubs fans might remember from this summer's trade deadline rumors, Kyle Finnegan, who signed a two-year deal to return to the Tigers, the team he joined in July after coming over in a deal from the Nationals.

Cubs still figure to be very active on the pitching front this offseason

Finnegan slightly outpaced what the Cubs gave Maton (2 years, $14.5 million) with a two-year, $19 million contract that keeps him in the Motor City through 2027. The right-hander thrived with Detroit down the stretch after altering his pitch mix, posting a 1.50 ERA, 1.97 FIP and 0.722 WHIP across 16 appearances.

We all know that's the type of arm Hoyer loves - someone who, at the time, may be underperforming, but the team believes can take things to the next level with some tweaks and work with pitching coach Tommy Hottovy. There weren't any concrete rumors connecting the Cubs to Finnegan leading up to his reunion with the Tigers, but given his modest price tag and the team's prior interest, I wondered if they might circle back here.

With the Winter Meetings starting to wind down, the Cubs still figure to be very active in the pitching market with only Maton and Daniel Palencia penciled into the relief mix at this point. They've been connected to Suarez, but we'll have to see if Hoyer is ready to dole out another multi-year offer - and one of significant value, at that, to land an arm of that caliber.