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4 players the Chicago Cubs will regret not signing
Looking back at MLB free agency this past winter, It's safe to say the Chicago Cubs are in a much better position to succeed in 2023 than they were just a season ago. However, the front office missed several critical targets at the top of their wish list that could have projected the Cubs higher in the standings this year. Though you can't always sign whoever you want to and can't force it by hindering your team's budget in the future, these are four players the Chicago Cubs will regret that they missed out on.
4 players the Chicago Cubs will regret not signing - 4. Jose Abreu
Kicking it off with first baseman Jose Abreu. The Cubs were heavily rumored to sign the former Chicago White Sox slugger due to the need to platoon with future Cubs 1B, Matt Mervis. It also would have served as an easy move for Abreu, who could stay in Chicago and, thus, not move his family away. Inevitably, the Cubs swung and missed, with Abreu landing a three-year deal with the Houston Astros.
At two years and $40M, the Cubs' offer to Abreu was respectable. Unfortunately, the Astros opted to sign him for an extra year, which Abreu couldn't turn down. Even with Abreu's absent power last season, he was still a hitter 37% better than the league average with a wRC+ of 137. According to his ZiPS projections, he is still projected for a 129 wRC+, which would be second on the Cubs, trailing only Seiya Suzuki.
4 players the Chicago Cubs will regret not signing - 3. Andrew Chafin
Former Cubs fan favorite, Andrew Chafin, cracks this list as the only reliever on here the Cubs will regret missing out on. As it sits, the Cubs lack a true veteran lefty reliever in the back end of the bullpen who can help mentor Brandon Hughes. After posting two strong years in 2021 and 2022 with ERA's of 1.83 and 2.83, the stars didn't quite align for a Cubs/Chafin reunion as we wound up signing with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Instead, the Cubs opted for Michael Fulmer, inking the veteran to a one-year, $4.0M deal. In the process, they saved $2.25M, and although we all wanted to see Chafin return to the Cubs bullpen, the Cubs front office deserves the benefit of the doubt with how well they've recruited pitching recently. Nevertheless, his presence in Chicago would have been a nice dose of nostalgia for fans who recently have grown accustomed to seeing players they love not return.
4 players the Chicago Cubs will regret not signing - 2. Brandon Drury
After a breakout season from Brandon Drury, The Chicago Cubs elected not to pursue the versatile infielder, even though he would have filled multiple holes for the team. Before the signings of Trey Mancini and Eric Hosmer, the Cubs desperately needed a first baseman after missing out on Abreu, and Drury's 1.000% fielding rate at first in 30 games last year would have been welcomed with open arms. However, Drury's value resides outside his defense.
Offensively, Drury posted a career-best .263/.320/.492 with 28 home runs and 87 RBIs, along with a 123 wRC+. Those numbers accumulated to a 3.0 WAR for Drury on the season. Granted, Drury had more success in the first half of the year being with the Cincinnati Reds in Great American Ballpark, but Wrigley Field, too, is generally a hitter's ballpark when the wind isn't howling in. Drury signed for two years and 17.0M, just a slight increase over Mancini. Drury batted .277 with two homers and eight knocked in during Spring Training.
4 players the Chicago Cubs will regret not signing - 1. Omar Narvaez
With the Cubs letting Willson Contreras go this past offseason, they opted to fill the hole left behind by a defensive-minded catcher in Tucker Barnhart. Earlier in free agency, it was Christian Vazquez that the Cubs had been formally linked to, but Omar Narvaez really could have helped the Cubs behind the plate from an offensive and defensive perspective.
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Though he is towards the bottom of the leaderboard among active catchers in caught stealing percentage, Narvaez's ability to frame pitches and call games made him a necessity for the Cubs this past winter. In 2022, he was 6th in catcher-framed runs with 6, after being first in the MLB with 10 in 2021. Aside from that, his experience calling games for Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff in Milwaukee would have been a massive boost for the Cub's pitching staff. Offensively, he averaged a slash of .276/.361/.412 from 2016-2019 while also batting .266/.342/.402 and earning his first All-Star honor in 2021.