The Chicago Cubs have had an excellent offseason where they’ve added the necessary players to hopefully make the playoffs this season.
The biggest moves the Cubs made so far were finally getting a superstar to be the face of their franchise in Kyle Tucker, and getting All-Star closer Ryan Pressly to lock down the bullpen.
Both will be key contributors and hopefully propel the Cubs to winning the National League Central which they haven’t won since 2020, and haven’t won in a full season since 2017.
50 days to go before Opening Day
There are just 50 days to go before Opening Day and just four days before the Cubs pitchers and catchers report for spring training. It is slowly becoming exciting that baseball will be back in the Northside in less than two months and the Cubs will hopefully make this season an exciting one.
Only 50 days until you get to watch your favorite team again 🥹 pic.twitter.com/bswHiT9Cbd
— MLB (@MLB) February 5, 2025
The Cubs have completely revamped their roster to be better than the 83-79 win team they have been the past two years. Adding Tucker and Pressly will certainly add a couple of wins on their own, but with the depth pieces and other bullpen options added the Cubs certainly could win 90+ games.
Recently, the Cubs were projected by PECOTA to win that amount of games and possibly finish as the third-best team in baseball. PECOTA also predicted that the Cubs have a close to 80% chance to win the National League Central this season.
A battle for the NL Central
With the division taking a huge step back, the central is wide open for the Cubs to win. Both the Brewers and Cardinals regressed and the Pirates will be the same as last season after not making any major moves this offseason. The real threat to the Cubs will be the Cincinnati Reds who have been quietly building a roster to compete with the Cubs for the Central.
The Reds brought in an experienced manager Terry Francona, to lead their young core and mold them into a premier ball club. The Reds also added experience to their rotation when they traded for Brady Singer of the Kansas Royals, who will be a nice number three option in their rotation.
The Cubs will have their work cut out for them when they play the Reds this season with the series between the two possibly becoming scrappy. The Brewers for their part won’t be slouches and will still give the Cubs a run for their money. The Brewers still have Christian Yelich, Freddy Peralta, and William Contreras to name a few who will put up decent numbers for the Brewcrew this season.
Young talent coming down the pike
The Cubs will also see a lot of their top prospects make their Major League Debuts this season, with top prospect Matt Shaw most likely to be the first, possibly making his debut on Opening Day. Shaw will have all of spring training to showcase his offensive and defensive abilities to prove he can counted on to be the Cub’s everyday third baseman.
Other prospects that could make their way to Wrigley this season are Cade Horton, Moisés Ballesteros, James Triantos, Kevin Alcántara, and Owen Caissie. All of whom including Shaw made MLB.com’s top 100 prospectslist for the second season in a row.
Chicago Cubs are ready to go
The Cubs have virtually completed everything they wanted to do this offseason to improve the roster for this season.
They added a face of the franchise, they acquired a lockdown closer, and they added depth to their roster to give them more versatility.
The possibility of the Cubs still signing Alex Bregman could happen, which would solidify them as the winners of the offseason, and further bolster their chances of winning the Central and making the playoffs.
This season will hopefully be one to remember for the Cubs and it’s coming up fast and it’s great to have baseball back once again!
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