Cubs Rumors: Potential free agent target drawing widespread interest early on

The Chicago Cubs have a solid starting rotation. But with a landlocked position player group that makes significant offensive upgrades challenging, further bolstering the pitching staff is one way Jed Hoyer raise the floor of the team heading into 2025.

Unlikely (or unable) to play in the deep end of the free agent pool on names like Corbin Burnes and Blake Snell, most of the speculation has centered around that next tier of free agents, including veteran right-hander and two-time World Series champion Nathan Eovaldi.

If the Cubs want to add him to the fold, they'll have to come out on top in a market that's growing increasingly crowded. According to reports, roughly a dozen teams have checked in with his camp, with his former club, the Boston Red Sox, among them. Of course, there's a Cubs connection there, with Craig Breslow now calling the shots for the Sox front office.

Given he turns 35 in February, he's unlikely to secure more than a two (or maybe three)-year deal this winter, which aligns perfectly with what the Cubs prefer: avoiding lengthy, high-dollar deals that have the potential to age poorly. Eovaldi has worked to a 3.63 FIP over the last five years - playing a key role on the Texas Rangers' 2023 championship-winning team.

Still capable of running it up into the mid-90s, while also keeping the ball on the ground regularly, Eovaldi could be a perfect compliment to Justin Steele and Shota Imanaga atop the rotation. He brings tremendous postseason experience (3.05 ERA in 79.2 career postseason innings) and could allow Craig Counsell to shift some of the team's younger arms into the bullpen to start the year.

Eovaldi isn't going to break the bank and checks a lot of boxes when it comes to what the Cubs need. Again, he doesn't bring the star power of a Juan Soto or Corbin Burnes, but he would make the starting rotation notably stronger - and give Counsell a proven October presence if the team can snap its lengthy postseason drought.