Welcome back to the Cubs Beat newsletter. Jordan Bastian has covered baseball for MLB.com since 2005, including the Cubs since the 2019 season. |
Here are the dates, names and decision points to know as the Cubs’ Hot Stove season kicks into high gear. What are the key dates? First day after the World Series: Eligible players become free agents. Also, the trade freeze is lifted, and Major League players may be traded between clubs. Fifth day after the World Series: This is the deadline for teams and players to make decisions on contract options, the deadline for clubs to reinstate all players on the 60-day injured list and the deadline for clubs to tender qualifying offers (4 p.m. CT). Also, the “quiet period” ends, and Major League free agents are free to sign with any club as of 4 p.m. CT. Nov. 10-13: General Managers Meetings in Las Vegas Nov. 18: The deadline for players to accept a qualifying offer is 3 p.m. CT. Also, the deadline to add players to the 40-man roster to protect them from the Rule 5 Draft is 5 p.m. CT. Nov. 21: Tender deadline. By 7 p.m. CT on the Friday before Thanksgiving, teams must formally tender a contract to all unsigned players for the following season, including their arbitration-eligible players. If a player is non-tendered, he becomes a free agent. Dec. 8-11: Winter Meetings in Orlando, including the MLB Draft lottery on Dec. 9 and the Rule 5 Draft on Dec. 10. |
Dec. 15: End of the 2025 international signing period. Jan. 8: Eligible players and clubs exchange arbitration figures. Jan. 15: Start of the new international signing period. Feb. 11: Pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training Who are the Cubs’ free agents? RHP Ryan Brasier INF Willi Castro RHP Aaron Civale RHP Brad Keller LHP Drew Pomeranz LHP Taylor Rogers 1B Carlos Santana RHP Michael Soroka LHP Caleb Thielbar OF Kyle Tucker Tucker is not only the marquee name in the Cubs’ free-agent class, but he's arguably the top free-agent position player in baseball this offseason. Chicago knew it might only be a one-year arrangement when it traded for Tucker last winter, so there is no guarantee he will be back in 2026, especially with the kind of lucrative contract he could command. |
Beyond Tucker’s situation, the Cubs will have a whole lot of holes to fill in the bullpen. Keller, Pomeranz and Thielbar, specifically, turned into important arms for Chicago’s relief corps. Expect the North Siders to try to retain a few of the arms hitting the open market. Soroka will be an interesting one to monitor, as his time with Chicago was intriguing but injury-marred. What about contract options? LHP Shota Imanaga ($57.75 million club for 2026-28, $15.25 million player for ’26) RHP Andrew Kittredge ($9 million club, $1 million buyout) RHP Colin Rea ($6 million club, $750,000 buyout) INF Justin Turner ($10 million mutual, $2 million buyout) Imanaga’s contract option situation is a little more layered than the description above. Essentially, the Cubs can pick up a three-year option or give Imanaga a path to either staying in the fold for at least 2026 (with multiple options again next winter) or becoming a free agent this offseason. Follow this link for a more in-depth explanation. Given the number of players potentially exiting the staff this winter via free agency, it could make sense to keep Kittredge (a key addition at the Trade Deadline) and Rea (second on the Cubs in innings pitched in 2025) around for another year. While Turner made a big impact behind the scenes and in limited at-bats, his option might be too pricey given his role. |
Will any of the Cubs’ free agents get a qualifying offer? Tucker is expected to get a QO, which is valued at $22.025 million for the 2026 season. If a player receives and declines the one-year offer, his former team would be in line for Draft-pick compensation if he signs with a new team. Since the QO system began in 2012, only 14 of 144 players have accepted the one-year deal. The only other QO candidate for the Cubs would be Imanaga, but a few things would have to happen before that step in the process. Chicago would have to decline the three-year club option for 2026-28, and Imanaga would subsequently need to decline the $15.25 million player option for '15. If those two things happen, Imanaga would be eligible for a QO. If you want to learn more about the system of qualifying offers, including who is eligible this year and who is not, MLB.com’s Thomas Harrigan has you covered in this explainer. Who is arbitration-eligible? RHP Javier Assad C Reese McGuire RHP Eli Morgan LHP Justin Steele Are any of those players non-tender candidates? McGuire and Morgan might fall into this category. While McGuire stepped up as a solid backup catching option last season, the Cubs have Carson Kelly and Miguel Amaya as the main two catchers for 2026. If non-tendered, it’s possible Chicago could try to retain McGuire on a Minor League deal. Morgan was a trade addition last winter, but he endured struggles on the mound (12.27 ERA in seven MLB games) and injuries. |
Who needs to be added to the 40-man roster this offseason? There is a long list of players in the Cubs’ system who will be eligible for the Rule 5 Draft, so let’s narrow the focus to MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 list for the ballclub. Here are prospects who would be exposed to the Rule 5 Draft if not protected: INF Pedro Ramirez (No. 8), RHP Brandon Birdsell (No. 9), INF James Triantos (No. 10), INF Cristian Hernandez (No. 11), RHP Grant Kipp (No. 19), RHP Connor Noland (No. 22), RHP Will Sanders (No. 23), LHP Drew Gray (No. 27) and RHP Tyler Schaffer (No. 30). Birdsell entered 2025 as one of Chicago’s top pitching prospects, but he had surgery on his right elbow in early September. • These Cubs prospects could make waves with the 2026 squad Who are the Cubs’ trade candidates? If the Cubs want to pull off a trade for an impact starting pitcher, the names atop the list for other teams from the farm system will surely include Chicago’s trio of Top 100 prospects: outfielder Owen Caissie (Cubs’ No. 1 prospect, No. 47 in MLB), catcher Moisés Ballesteros (No. 2, No. 53) and righty Jaxon Wiggins (No. 3, No. 67). That said, Caissie and Ballesteros might have more playing time open up if Tucker signs elsewhere, and Wiggins is on the radar as rotation depth for 2026. Two more Cubs prospects -- outfielder Kevin Alcántara (Chicago's No. 5 prospect) and first baseman Jonathon Long (No. 7) -- could be among prospects dangled as trade pieces, given a more difficult path to MLB at-bats with the Cubs. Looking at the Cubs’ big league roster, things are pretty rigid among the position-player group, so the front office would need to get creative in trade talks. Teams will surely ask about Matt Shaw. Nico Hoerner is in the last year of his deal, but he is a key part of the current core. Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki are also free agents after 2026, but they have full no-trade clauses in their deals. |
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