Beloved former Cubs slugger won't sign in-season extension, looks toward open market

While the Chicago Cubs would love to sign Kyle Tucker to an extension before next season, there is always the chance that he’s going to get a better offer from somewhere else. Should the star outfielder depart, it looks like a different Kyle will at least be an option for Jed Hoyer and company. For now, it appears that Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber is will test the free agency market this winter.

While Schwarber isn’t the overall hitter that Tucker is, he would offer a very impressive bat and it’s one that the Cubs almost certainly didn’t enter the season believing would be available for the 2026 campaign. Scwarber has a .244/.378/.534/.912 slashline with 22 home runs already.

If Kyle Tucker lands elsewhere, the Cubs could pivot to a powerful option with deep ties to Wrigley

And despite the fact that he’s had to carry the Phillies offense with Bryce Harper missing time with an injury, his team isn’t talking extension with the Chicago Cubs’ 2016 World Series hero. That’s at least according to local radio host John Kincade.

“I believe they are letting Schwarber go to free agency,” Kincade said on a recent episode of his show. “I do not expect that Schwarber is going to be signed before the end of the year. From what I was told, they gave an offer. The offer was not embarrassing but it was, ‘yeah, that’s not getting it done.’"

Schwarber is of course, one of the members of the Cubs “core” that was seemingly setting up the team for a dynasty run. However, that core was dismantled just a few years after they won the World Series. The slugger was the first of the group to be allowed to move on, and there have always been Cubs fans who felt that was a mistake.

In recent years, the former first-rounder has established himself as one of the game's premier power hitters, averaging 43 homers a season since the start of 2022. He's on pace to blow past 40 long balls again this year, already with 22 homers while playing a key role for the Phillies' offense.

Kyle Tucker should be Plan A for the Chicago Cubs this season and offseason. If that plan falls through and the Phillies do let Kyle Schwarber walk, he would be a very enticing Plan B ahead of the 2026 campaign.