The MLB offseason has been a blast to follow, unless you are a fan of the Chicago Cubs. There has been plenty of drama and surprise moves taking place, but the Cubs just continue to miss out.
The Cubs were connected to a number of big name free agents over the past few weeks, and nearly all of them have now signed with other teams. What should scare Cubs fans is the fact that most of the deals were relatively cheap, and it was money that the Cubs could have afforded.
Last week there were rumors flying around that the team were going to spend big this offseason, and they basically had an open checkbook from Tom Rickets. That checkbook might remain open, but Ricketts hasn’t had to write any big checks up to this point.
Now is a good time to start to worry if you are a Cubs fan as time is starting to run out. This current version of the Cubs is not going to compete for a playoff spot, and they could still be years away without some signings this winter.
Only One Shortstop Remains
This offseason was the year of the shortstops as there were four great players available at that position. That number is now down to just one after Trea Turner, Carlos Correa and Xander Bogaerts have both inked deals with new teams.
That leaves just Dansby Swanson and the Cubs have been attached to the former Atlanta Braves player this offseason. Correa still feels like the biggest name that was available, but it’s now time to shift the focus to Swanson.
Since so many of the other big names at other positions are no longer on the board, the Cubs simply have to find a way to get one of the shortstops. It still might not be enough to turn the team into a contender, but Hoyer and company have to save face by making a big splash.
Contreras To the Cardinals
Not only are the Cubs striking out on signing players of their own, but they are watching their division rivals continue to get better. It was a common rumor that the Cardinals were interested in Willson Contreras, and that deal has now happened.
It’s going to be a nightmare watching Contreras in St. Louis for the next five years, and there is no doubt that he will be fired up to play the Cubs. Contreras still feels slighted by how his tenure ended in Chicago, and he will be fired up to play those 19 games each season.
Yadier Molina is finally out of St. Louis, but it might actually be worse seeing Contreras behind the plate for the Cardinals. Not signing Contreras was an understandable move, but he ended up in the worst possible spot.
