The Chicago Cubs were one of the busiest teams in baseball this offseason, making several moves to upgrade their lineup in hopes of improving their offensive production.
Their biggest move was acquiring outfielder Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros to be the new anchor in their lineup. The star right fielder has the potential to make an MVP-level impact on the team, coming off a 4.7 WAR campaign despite playing in only 78 games.
Prior to that, he recorded a WAR of at least 5.4 in three straight campaigns, cementing his status as one of the most consistent two-way players in the game. In 2023, he led the American League with 112 RBI as well.
Another highly-anticipated addition to the lineup is top prospect Matt Shaw.
The talented infielder is going to have every opportunity to win the starting third base job during Spring Training and is widely believed to be the odds-on favorite to be in the Opening Day lineup against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Another solid depth addition was made behind the plate, where Carson Kelly should help as a complement to Miguel Amaya.
With Cody Bellinger being the only player lost from last year’s lineup, this group has a chance to be among the most productive in baseball, especially if Pete Crow-Armstrong can continue making strides at the plate.
Based on FanGraphs projections, the entire starting lineup is expected to produce at least a 2.1 WAR except for Amaya, but he and Kelly combined come out to 2.7 WAR.
There is a lot to be excited about in Chicago, as the arrow is certainly pointing up for the franchise.
Many people see them as the favorites to win the National League Central, but there are going to be some challenges along the way.
Amongst them, the Pittsburgh Pirates starting rotation.
What the Cubs’ division rivals have been able to do when it comes to identifying and developing pitching talent has been extraordinary. They are going to a thorn in the side of Chicago for years to come with two of the best young arms in the game; Paul Skenes and Jared Jones.
MLB.com named them the No. 1 and No. 22 rookies last year and with good reason; both were dominant in their own right.
Jones came out on fire in Spring Training to the point that the Pirates had no choice but to put him in their Opening Day rotation. He overcame some issues with walks, pounding the zone consistently and blowing away hitters with a great fastball and nasty slider.
The Cubs did find some success against him, facing Jones four times and recording a .281/.333/.551 slash line with five home runs, the most any team recorded.
Skenes had a historic 2024, taking home the Rookie of the Year Award, starting the All-Star game for the NL and finishing in third place in the Cy Young Award voting.
He dominated the Cubs in four starts, as they managed a paltry .203/.289/.270 slash line, getting struck out 30 times in 20 innings.
While the Chicago lineup is deeper and more established than the one in Pittsburgh, their pitching staff is nothing to sneeze at.
In addition to Skenes and Jones, they have Bubba Chandler, Braxton Ashcraft and Thomas Harrington not far away. Mitch Keller is established at the Major League level as well, as their pitching staff is going to give the Cubs and all of their opponents fits throughout 2025 and beyond.
