Latest Kyle Tucker rumor should remind Chicago Cubs fan of a silver lining

Through the first two weeks of the 2025 season, it's clear that the Chicago Cubs will need to sign Kyle Tucker to a contract extension before he reaches free agency this offseason.

After Vladimir Guerrero Jr. inked a contract extension with the Toronto Blue Jays last weekend, Tucker figures to be the best position player on the free-agent market next winter. Given that fact, many have considered it a mere formality that Tucker will reach free agency. Especially when you consider the Cubs have yet to sign a player to a contract in excess of $200MM,

While that may be true, there are slight reasons for optimism.

There are reasons for optimism for the Cubs and Kyle Tucker

The first arrived from Marquee's Lance Brozdowski during the Cubs Daily Podcast. After the Guerrero extension, Brozdowski reached out to someone with Excel Sports Management, the agency representing Tucker, and they offered 10 years for $475MM as the starting projection for Tucker's next contract. If that's the case, that is a deal the Cubs should have made yesterday.

Along those lines, we can't just ignore that Tucker is represented by Excel Sports Management. That is the same agency that represents Dansby Swanson and Jason Heyward, the two largest free-agent deals in the Cubs' organization's history.

Beyond that, the messaging from Jed Hoyer and Carter Hawkins since the season started has been that Tucker is a player that any team should want to build around. It seems like a rather obligatory thing to say, but it should be noted that the front office wasn't that direct in 2023 when talking about the possibility of Cody Bellinger signing a new deal for the 2024 season.

And now, we bring the latest from Mike Rodriguez. He is not the first MLB insider that comes to mind but to his credit, he had the news of Guerrero signing an extension with the Blue Jays before anyone else. Rodriguez reports that the Cubs and Tucker have already begun discussions on a contract extension.

Now, this is far from a signal that a deal is imminent, but if true, the Cubs already starting negotiations with Tucker's camp is an important first step. Odds are that Tucker will still prefer to reach free agency, however, as we pointed out above, there are reasons why an in-season extension isn't impossible.

Rodriguez's report is thrown cold water by Jesse Rogers of ESPN 1000, who reported on Friday morning that the two sides have not started negotiations. However, Rogers does anticipate those talks starting at some point during the season.