Cubs Rumors: Team 'one of the most active' in the game seeking bullpen arms

If you're a mid-tier starting pitcher on the free agent market, life is good. One day after the New York Mets gave Frankie Montas a two-year, $34 million deal, the Chicago Cubs added left-hander Matthew Boyd on a two-year contract worth $29 million - both surprising figures for a pair of pitchers with checkered track records.

It doesn't appear Jed Hoyer is stopping there. After bringing in Boyd, the Cubs' front office has shifted its attention to the bullpen - and, according to one report, are one of the busiest teams in the league in that regard.

Chicago has already added a handful of new faces to the pen this offseason, most notably Eli Morgan in a trade with the Cleveland Guardians. Morgan worked to a 1.93 ERA last year and should be a nice bridge piece for manager Craig Counsell.

Looking at where the roster stands, Porter Hodge seems like your ninth-inning guy after a breakout rookie season. If Hoyer went out and added a proven closer, though, nobody would be surprised (we've talked at length about two recently non-tendered arms in Jordan Romano and Kyle Finnegan as potential fits).

Adding Boyd means you're left with one rotation spot for Jordan Wicks, Ben Brown, Javier Assad and Hayden Wesneski. Given the injury-shortened run in 2024, Brown seems likely to pitch out of relief in 2025 and there are rumors the Cubs are fielding calls on both Assad and Wicks. It's too soon to say how that will all shake out, but the odd men out in the rotation could shift to relief roles.

Also set to return and compete for roles in the bullpen are Tyson Miller, who thrived after coming back to Chicago, veteran Julian Merryeather, trade deadline pick-up Nate Pearson and southpaws Luke Little and Rob Zastryzny.

The Cubs also added veteran Phil Bickford on a minor-league deal, so expect him to get some runway in spring training. The depth Hoyer is assembling is solid, but if he can go out and add one or two shutdown arms to the mix, Chicago could ride the strength of its pitching staff back into contention next season.