With spring training underway, the Chicago Cubs will soon see whether the great moves on paper this winter translate into more success on the field.
For the Cubs, it was a busy offseason, especially in the trade market. Currently, Chicago has slashed payroll compared to last year and is operating in the middle of the pack in that area.
It is rather shocking to see that a team that cut payroll improved this winter, but the Cubs did a great job on the trade market to make upgrades.
While Chicago is a better team than they were a year prior, fans still certainly want to see the franchise start to spend more.
Regardless of the spending, the team is going to be better in 2025 with some of the additions they made. Coming into the winter, fixing a bullpen that was one of the worst in the league last season was a priority.
The Cubs certainly accomplished that with the additions of most notably Eli Morgan and Ryan Pressly.
Pressly will be the more significant of the two additions as the likely closer for Chicago to start the season. However, at 36 years old, there could be some concerns about his ability to be a high-end closer at this stage of his career.
While the veteran right-hander will get a shot to prove he can be what the Cubs need, they might look to make an upgrade at some point.
Recently, Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report spoke about the Cubs being a potential landing spot for two-time All-Star closer Ryan Helsley in what would be considered a trade deadline move.
The closer for the St. Louis Cardinals is certainly one of the best in the game and could be available up until the trade deadline. With the Cardinals seemingly going into a bit of a rebuild, moving a closer the caliber of Helsley makes sense.
Last season, the right-hander went 7-4 with a 2.04 ERA, 49 saves, and a 3.0 WAR.
Pressly wasn't keen on remaining Josh Hader's set-up man for the Houston Astros, which is what ultimately made the trade happen. Right now, Helsley would be an upgrade compared over Pressly, who before moving to a set-up role was a quality closer for Houston.
For Chicago, this is a really important year with star Kyle Tucker being a free agent next season. They must be mindful of this and focus on trying to put the best team possible out there.
If for some reason Pressly struggles, pursuing Helsley makes a lot of sense. Even though trades between the two rivals are rare, the Cubs have a lot of appealing prospects to offer potentially.
