3 superstar free agents who could join the Cubs next season

3 superstar free agents who could join the Cubs in 2024 - 2: Julio Urias

Heading into his final year of team control at just 26 years old, Dodgers left-hander Julio Urias is poised for a massive payday if things go according to plan this year. A Cy Young finalist in 2022, he brought home the ERA title with a 2.16 mark across 175 innings of work and has been downright otherwordly since the start of the 2021 campaign.

During that span, the Mexican-born southpaw has made 63 starts for Los Angeles, working to a 2.57 ERA, 3.41 FIP and 0.990 WHIP while racking up 360 2/3 innings. Somehow, you never hear enough about this guy on a national level - but you can bet front offices across the league are salivating at the chance of cementing him atop their rotations next winter.

There are a couple avenues Urias could pursue. A higher-AAV deal somewhere in the four or five-year range would allow him to hit free agency again in his early 30s, potentially setting him up for a second payday in his prime. If that's the case, the Cubs should pounce. The lack of long-term risk, regardless of the pricetag in the interim, would make him a perfect fit and give Chicago a top-of-the-rotation arm capable of dominating hitters every time out.