3 needs the Chicago Cubs still have to cross off their wish list

There has been a growing expectation that the Chicago Cubs will be active during the final month of the off-season before Spring Training.

There is no doubt that it has been a unique off-season for not only the Cubs but Major League Baseball as a whole.

An unprecedented amount of MLB Trade Rumors' Top 50 free agents remain available and that is unusual territory for the market to be in as the calendar inches closer to February.

There will be an uptick in activity leading into and during Spring Training with the Cubs likely to be at the center of the attention.

The Cubs have only made two additions to their Major League roster this off-season so far. The Cubs signed Japanese starting pitcher Shota Imanaga to a creative multi-year deal and seemingly addressed their need at first base with the trade for top prospect Michael Busch.

It goes without saying that Imanaga and Busch can not be the only improvements that the Cubs make before the start of the 2024 season. New manager Craig Counsell will be a clear upgrade over former Cubs manager David Ross but it would be a fireable offense to have Counsell begin his tenure with a worse roster than what Ross had last season.

Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer is aware of that fact and assured fans that at the Cubs Conventions two weeks ago the work is not done. Hoyer said the team is about halfway done with their off-season and that is important considering the three items that remain on their wish list.

3 needs the Chicago Cubs still have to cross off their wish list - Middle of the order bat

The Cubs are hoping that Michael Busch's hit profile is everything that projection models think it should be when he becomes a full-time player at the Major League level. Having said that, projection should not make the Cubs comfortable in terms of their starting lineup.

Even with Busch in the fold, likely as the everyday first base, this is still a Cubs' offense that does not have Cody Bellinger or Jeimer Candelario. Candelario will be playing for the Cincinnati Reds and Bellinger remains on the free-agent market.

Barring an unexpected trade for Pete Alonso of the New York Mets, it would seem that Bellinger will be the answer to the Cubs' need for another middle-of-the-order bat. Though, even with Bellinger back, the Cubs still may be lacking overall power.

3 needs the Chicago Cubs still have to cross off their wish list - Relief pitchers

One of the biggest regrets that Jed Hoyer had over the construction of the 2023 roster was the lack of stability in the bullpen. Hoyer was hoping to find luck with the signings of Michael Fulmer and Brad Boxberger but injuries and ineffectiveness plagued each veteran from the start of the season.

There were diamonds in the rough that emerged out of the Cubs' bullpen last season with Adbert Alzolay showing he is capable of closing out games while Julian Merryweather and Mark Leiter Jr were effective bridge options to get to Alzolay.

The issue is that there was an over-reliance on Alzolay, Merryweather, and Leiter last season. The Cubs need stability in the middle innings and that must be addressed before the start of the season. Potential targets Josh Hader and Robert Stephenson are no longer options but the Cubs remain interested in several veterans.