Taking on the San Diego Padres in the National League Wild Card, the Chicago Cubs had a good opportunity to get something done in the postseason. Unfortunately for Chicago, it couldn’t do that, and both sides of the ball were to blame.
The Cubs’ offense has shown throughout the year that it can swing it with the best of them when things are at their best.
In this Wild Card series, that was far from the case. The Cubs will have to turn their attention to the offseason, one that’s expected to be perhaps the most interesting in Major League Baseball history, with an expected lockout.
As the Cubs get prepared for the offseason, there are many ways that this organization can go. At the top of that list should simply be adding more talent.
Chicago’s roster entering next season is relatively cheap in comparison to some of the other top teams in Major League Baseball.
However, according to the Cubs beat reporters for The Athletic, there’s not a sense that they’re going to be the team that ends up landing Tarik Skubal.
“With some trade chips still on hand and a vast amount of salaries falling off the books — Roster Resource projects Chicago’s major-league payroll has roughly $110 million in commitments — Hoyer’s group will have to pour those resources into the rotation.
“Just guessing that the Cubs won’t be the big-market franchise willing to hand Tarik Skubal the biggest pitching contract ever before the current labor deal expires at 11:59 p.m. ET on Dec. 1,” Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic wrote.
When it comes to adding more talent on the mound, that should be a priority for the Cubs this offseason.
Chicago has proven throughout the past couple of months that it can win games at a very high level, and adding a starter of Skubal’s caliber would only add to that. While his price will be high, it’s not something the Cubs can’t pay if they really want to.
