Ranking the 5 most valuable offseason additions for the Cubs to this point

Chicago Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer added a lot of new faces to his team's roster in the offseason, and many of them have turned into vital contributors in the first six weeks of the 2025 season.

These initial weeks have seen the Cubs run through a gauntlet of talented teams like the Dodgers, Giants, Padres and Diamondbacks, all of whom seem destined to compete for playoff spots at the this year. The Cubs emerged from this brutal stretch of the schedule in first place in the National League Central, and these five players were major factors in that success.

5. Brad Keller

Reliever Brad Keller has been an unexpected surprise for the Cubs' relief corps. The 29-year-old is enjoying one of the most successful stretches of his career with a 3.38 ERA and 21 strikeouts in 18 2/3 innings pitched in his first 17 outings. Notably, Keller has only surrendered an earned run in three of those 17 appearances this season, giving manager Craig Counsell a sturdy option for high-leverage situations.

One of the most surprising aspects of Keller's resurgence is the fact that his fastball velocity, which is averaging 96.9 MPH this year, is the fastest it has been in years. Keller has flashed elite command of this pitch, and his wipeout slider, to generate a lot of soft contact and ground balls (59.2 GB rate), while limiting walks to a 7.8 percent clip.

Hoyer outdid himself when he signed Keller to a minor league contract in February, and taking a chance on giving him a roster spot after spring training. So far, Keller looks like a home run addition to the 2025 Cubs who gives the team much-needed stability in the bullpen.