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The Chicago Cubs need to make a real push this offseason if they want to keep pace in the NL Central. The Pirates seem to have woken up all of a sudden and could be active this offseason, the Cardinals are regrouping, and the Brewers continue to be the class of the division despite operating with far less cash at their disposal. Chicago has already been mentioned in a number of trade rumors so far this offseason, but now it appears as though they are about to finally strike.
Rotation help was on the Cubs' wishlist this offseason, but it was unclear exactly how aggressive the team would be to reinforce the starting pitcher crew given that Shota Imanaga did end up returning. For months, it felt like Chicago coveted Zac Gallen, but so did the rest of the league and they were unable to get a deal done...until now.
On Saturday, USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported that the Cubs are close to a deal with Gallen on a four year deal. However, things took a bit of a turn when that reporting got almost immediately debunked.
Nightengale: Zac Gallen close to finalizing multi-year agreement with the Cubs.
— Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) December 6, 2025
Average of $22M per year.
UPDATE: The Chicago Cubs are HOPEFUL of finalizing an agreement with free-agent starter Zac Gallen on a multi-year deal, but the deal is NOT DONE with others still in contention. Gallen, with three top-10 Cy Young finishes, has averaged 32 starts a year for the past 4 seasons.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 6, 2025
The Cubs were really close to signing Zac Gallen...until they weren't
Nightegale first had enough to report that he was comfortable putting years and figures out there for public consumption. However, as soon as he did, multiple reports emerged that a deal was not done and wasn't even considered to be close to done. Classic Boob striking again.
While it is funny to point and make fun of Nightengale when he jumps the gun and getting reporting wrong, it does seem like the Cubs are in serious talks with Gallen and a deal could still easily get done. However, Chicago cannot be thrilled that the news broke before they had a deal. Now, the rest of the league knows what the Cubs have on the table and can potentially beat it.
Other than being a reminder of the perils of the real-time news cycle that exists everywhere these day, this situation also serves to remind us that this weekend is going to be the start of a LOT of rumors. Not all of them will end up true or get to the finish line, but the offseason is about to get very busy in a hurry.