The Chicago Cubs feel that they have their every day first baseman for years to come in Michael Busch.
“We really see Michael as a Gold Glove first baseman,” president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said of Busch in an interview on 670 The Score. “His versatility is great, but he made real strides at first. I thought after the first month of the season, he was fantastic at first. And that’s certainly how we’re seeing him.”
But injuries happen and unexpected falls from grace happen. So, what happens then?
Chicago Cubs Lacking Depth At First Base
The Cubs are now woefully lacking in the area of depth at the first base position and would be in dire straits if Busch were lost for a significant part of the season.
With the recent trading of minor league first baseman Matt Mervis to the Miami Marlins and the trading of Cody Bellinger before that, there’s, almost literally, nobody who could be moved up to the first base spot if Busch should fall out.
The best the Cubs have is a Double-A prospect, who is not ready for the majors, and Triple-A catching prospect Moises Ballesteros, who can play some first base in a pinch. The team doesn’t even have the first base-possible Isaac Paredes or Patrick Wisdom anymore.
It looks inevitable that Chicago will add first base backup before the start of training camp, with the most likely option being a bargain pickup, like a Frank Schwindel-type, who could exist in the system as nothing more than an emergency call up if/when necessary.
There’s also the possibility of a minor deal on the horizon, where the Cubs could pick up someone’s first baseman or major league-possible minor league asset.
Spencer Torkelson The The Cubs?
Brett Taylor of Bleacher Nation believes that the Detroit Tigers’ Spencer Torkelson may be that needed pickup for the team.
Per Taylor:
“Still just 25, Torkelson looked like he was turning a corner last year (.233/.313/.446/108 wRC+, 31 homers), but he struggled badly in 2024, and wound up spending half the season at Triple-A. He does have a minor league option year remaining, which makes him all the more attractive as a depth option. Also, even in his very down 2024 season, he did still produce against lefties (.235/.292/.506/122 wRC+). Consider me interested. The big limitation is that he’s a 1B/DH only; there’s no positional versatility there.”
Torkelson currently finds himself out of a job in Detroit and will just be taking up space on the Tigers’ roster. He’s also coming off a down year at the plate, so the Tigers’ asking price in a trade would not be too high. One year removed from a season where he hit 31 home runs and drove in 94 RBIs, he’s better than just a Triple-A asset hired in case of emergency.
The big issue with the right-handed hitting Torkelson is that he can only really play first base and DH. His lack of versatility would make it tough justifying a spot for him in the starting roster.
How About Bringing Back A Former Cub?
At this point, it really wouldn’t be all that unwise for the Cubs to consider bringing back Patrick Wisdom. The power-hitting right-hander is not the every-day answer at any position, but he CAN play third and first– two positions lacking depth at the moment– and his prodigious power does give the team a potent weapon off the bench. At the very least, Wisdom is a better option than Torkelson.
For right now, though, Chicago has no choice but to cross their fingers and hope Michael Busch stays healthy.
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