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Here are all of the Cubs players entering free agency after the 2024 season
While other teams enjoy the highs and lows of postseason baseball, the offseason is underway at the corner of Clark and Addison.
In what feels like an episode of the Twilight Zone, the Chicago Cubs matched their 83-79 record from a year ago, once again missing the postseason and leaving the fanbase disappointed and wanting more.
The Milwaukee Brewers subtracted Corbin Burnes, lost Christian Yelich down the stretch and handed the ship to Pat Murphy after the Cubs lured Craig Counsell to Chicago and still dominated the NL Central from start to finish, winning the division by 10 games. There's a chasmic gap between the teams right now and this offseason may be Jed Hoyer's last chance to close it.
It's not all doom and gloom, though. Hoyer's two biggest offseason moves from a year ago, the signing of Shota Imanaga and trade for Michael Busch, worked to perfection, with both players likely to garner some down-ballot Rookie of the Year love for their efforts.
There's a ton of money coming off the books - with the potential for more should Cody Bellinger opt out - which should set the front office up for a strong push in free agency. Speaking of which, let's look closer at the team's group of impending free agents to get a jump-start on the offseason.
Kyle Hendricks (2024 salary: $13.875 million)
If nothing else, Kyle Hendricks turned back the clock in what could be his final start in a Chicago Cubs uniform, pitching into the eighth and not allowing a run in front of a packed Wrigley Field crowd.
That's about all I can say for the veteran, who turned in the worst season of his professional career in 2024, eating innings and getting starts strictly out of necessity after the staff was hit hard by injuries. He was better in the second half, but he had only one direction to go after a disastrous first half that had everyone (Hendricks including) wondering if he'd even finish the year in Chicago.
Perhaps a team gives him a $2 million big-league deal this winter (maybe that team is the Cubs, who knows) - but a minor-league pact seems likely at this point. Never a guy with overpowering stuff, Hendricks' margin for error is smaller than ever and it showed this year.
David Bote (2024 salary: $3 million) - $7 million team option for 2025
After letting him rot at Iowa to close out the deal, the Chicago Cubs' ill-fated extension of David Bote is finally at an end. In what felt - and still feels like - an emotional move on the part of Theo Epstein, the Cubs handed Bote a five-year, $15 million extension in 2019 and never got much for their investment.
Of course, the ultimate walk-off will live on in Cubs lore forever, but from 2020-2024, Bote appeared in just 220 games at the big-league level, slashing .220/.294/.372 and accumulating just 0.4 bWAR, according to Baseball Reference. The team holds a $7 million team option with a $1 million buyout they're sure to exercise, ending Bote's time with the Cubs that dates back to the 2012 MLB Draft.
Cody Bellinger (2024 salary: $26.66 million - player opt-out for 2025)
Whether or not Cody Bellinger opts out of his deal with the Cubs will have a massive impact on how Jed Hoyer attacks the offseason. Set to make $27.5 million next year, Bellinger could head back to free agency in hopes of landing a longer-term deal, freeing up that money for Chicago in the process.
Bellinger wasn't able to replicate his 2023 NL Comeback Player of the Year performance this season, but was still a 2.2 bWAR player with a 111 OPS+, adding value on the basepaths and in the field, where he's capable of playing top-level defense both in the outfield and at first base.
Still only 29, he's young enough that he might find that long-term deal out there. Could a Bellinger opt-out open the doors to a high-profile free agent signing? It would certainly help in terms of opening up dollars, there's no doubt about that.
Drew Smyly (2024 salary: $9.5 million - $10 million mutual option for 2025)
Drew Smyly has played some critical roles for the Cubs over the last few seasons. This year, he got off to a stellar start in the first half before coming back down to earth down the stretch, finishing the year with a 0.0 bWAR and 3.84 ERA in 50 relief appearances.
Frankly, for $9.5 million, you need more from a reliever - and it makes the decision to turn down their end of the $10 million mutual option for 2025 pretty cut-and-dry. Smyly has had a nice run here on the North Side (who could forget his almost-perfect game in April 2023) - but there are more cost-effective options capable of replicating his results out there.
Jorge Lopez (2024 salary: $740,000)
A life-saving in-season pickup for the Cubs this year, veteran right-hander Jorge Lopez will look to turn his bounceback campaign on the North Side into a multi-year deal in free agency.
Lopez, 31, worked to a 2.03 ERA with Chicago, coming over after the Mets cut him loose for an on-field meltdown at Citi Field in June. He was a constant in Craig Counsell's circle of trust - and rightfully so. He limited opponents to a .167 average with runners in scoring position and a .083 clip with runners in scoring position in two outs.
A groin injury cut his season short in September, but he was a huge add off the scrap heap for Hoyer and the Cubs. There could definitely be mutual interest in a reunion this winter given how well things went for all involved this summer.
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