Friday will be another pivotal day for the Chicago Cubs' offseason as it marks the day that Major League Baseball teams must decide whether or not to tender contracts to players on their 40-man roster that do not have guaranteed contracts for the 2023 season. The Cubs' 40-man roster currently stands at 38 and the roster is littered with players that could become free agents by the end of the day.
Positions players Alfonso Rivas, Rafael Ortega, and Zach McKinstry seem like likely candidates to be non-tendered by the Cubs on Friday considering the team is looking for upgrades at the first base, centerfield, and shortstop positions this offseason. Arguably, the Cubs may have already replaced McKinstry with their acquisition of Tampa Rays utility infielder Miles Mastrobuoni in a trade that was completed earlier this week. On the pitching side, Rowan Wick is a name to watch as injuries have prevented him from firmly cementing himself in the backend of the Cubs' bullpen in recent seasons.
There will be a flurry of players added to the free agent market by the end of the day, and of course, centerfielder Cody Bellinger may be the biggest name of all. The Cubs have already identified Bellinger as one of their primary targets this offseason and it's possible that the Los Angeles Dodgers may look to trade the former National League MVP before being forced to make a decision on his contract status by end of the day.
More Cubs News
With the Arizona Fall League concluded, MLB Pipeline released its top-30 list of prospects that participated in the league. The Cubs had two prospects make the list as Matt Mervis ranked as the 23rd best prospect while outfielder Owen Caissie just made the list at the 30th spot.
Wrigley Field is considered one of the favorites to host the 2025 Major League Baseball All-Star game. Hosting an All-Star has always been high on the to-do list for Cubs' chairman Tom Ricketts and it would seem that he'll be able to cross that accomplishment off in the near future.
MLB News
St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt took home National League MVP honors on Thursday while New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge was crowned the American League MVP.
In an example of the type of trade you can expect more of today, the Seattle Mariners traded former American League Rookie of the Year Kyle Lewis to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday night in exchange for catcher/outfielder Cooper Hummel.