Cubs News: Carlos Correa signs with the Giants, Swanson, and more

The Chicago Cubs' 12-month flirtation with shortstop Carlos Correa has come to a disappointing end as Correa agreed to a 13-year deal with the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night.

The Cubs, as recently as Tuesday morning, were believed to be involved in Correa's market. However, there had been a growing expectation that the Cubs were going to shy away from offering Correa the type of contract he was seeking. Once the San Francisco Giants missed on free-agent outfielder Aaron Judge, they became a clear fit for Correa as the team that would be willing to offer him the most lucrative contract.

The growing conclusion from this Cubs' offseason is team president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer is afraid of making the same mistake the team made with the Jason Heyward contract. Heyward's contract, and the lack of production on the field, led to team chairman Tom Ricketts handcuffing the resources available to the baseball operations after 2018. Now, in 2022 with Ricketts and team president of business operations Crane Kenney not being afraid of saying the team has money to spend, Hoyer appears to be unwilling to offer a free agent like Correa the contract the market warrants over the fear of those resources no longer being available in future offseasons.

If that is the case, then there is a lack of trust building between Hoyer and Ricketts. The same lack of trust that led to Theo Epstein walking away from the Cubs' organization after 2020.

Dansby Swanson or bust?

Determining whether or not the Chicago Cubs' offseason can be successful now comes down to whether or not the team is able to come to an agreement with free-agent shortstop Dansby Swanson. Reports on Tuesday had Swanson's market heating up and that will likely be the case over the next 24-48 hours with Carlos Correa now having signed with the San Francisco Giants.

Let's be clear here that even if the Cubs do sign Swanson, there is still work that would have to be done in order for this offseason to be successful. Swanson, moving forward, projects as a 3-WAR player and there are questions regarding how sustainable his offensive success in 2022 is. Swanson has a high floor but in an offseason where the Cubs had a chance at landing Correa, Trea Turner, or Xander Bogaerts, coming away with Swanson is a deflating feeling.

Chicago Cubs add minor-league outfielder

The Chicago Cubs added former St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Ben DeLuzio on a minor-league deal on Tuesday.

DeLuzio slashed ,150/.292/.200/.492 in 25 plate appearances with the Cardinals last season but he does have plus speed as well as being a plus fielder in center field.