Chicago Cubs News: Trey Mancini reaction, Cub Convention, and more

After the signing of veteran free-agent first baseman Trey Mancini to a two-year deal on Saturday night, the Cubs may have placed a bow on their offseason. While the Cubs may not have added a superstar talent this offseason, and there are reasons to be concerned with the Cubs willingly operating against spending at the top end of the market, there is no question that they have raised the floor of expectations for the 2023 season to the point where they may sneak into the conversation for the postseason.

The clearest path for the Cubs to the postseason would be through winning the National League Central division. The addition of Mancini does push the Cubs' offense close to respectable levels and the key will be the development of the Cubs' starting rotation. If Justin Steele continues to build upon his emergence from the second half of the 2022 season and Hayden Wesneski continues the success that he had at the end of the 2022 season, then there are legitimate reasons to believe in regarding the Cubs and their chances of competing for the division title.

International Free Agent Signing day is today

Sunday will provide confirmation on the rumored International Free Agents that the Chicago Cubs have been linked to. As Northside Bound reminds us, the Cubs have been linked to three of the top 30 international free agents for this cycle. Those three international free agents are shortstop Derniche Valdez, shortstop Ludwig Espinoza, and shortstop Angel Cepeda. Don't get too caught on all three being listed as shortstops as it seems likely that their positions will change as they move through the Cubs' farm system.

"DERNICHE VALDEZ “Valdez has quick-twitch actions that show up in the batter’s box, where he has fast hands to snap the barrel through the zone with good bat speed.” ~ Baseball America LUDWIG ESPINOZA (BA REFERS TO HIM AS LUDWING) “He has a sound swing, a mature approach and good bat-to-ball skills from both sides of the plate with gap power, showing a little more juice from the left side.“ ~ Baseball America ANGEL CEPEDA “He can play shortstop, second base and third. He’s also athletic enough to play center field. Wherever he ends up playing, he’s also very likely going to make an impact when he’s in the batter’s box.” ~ Jesse Sanchez – MLB Pipeline"

- Northside Bound

An early look at Trey Mancini in a Chicago Cubs' uniform

A look at the Chicago Cubs' organizational depth

Trey Mancini chants at Day 2 of the Cubs Convention

The future looks bright for the Chicago Cubs

Kyle Hendricks provides an update on his recovery