Two-time All-MLB Second-Team selection Dylan Cease could return to the city of Chicago, but this time as a member of the Chicago Cubs.
Cease is set to enter his second season with the San Diego Padres after five seasons with the Chicago White Sox. He has been rumored to be on the trade block for most of the offseason. He is set to be a free agent after the 2025 season and is unlikely to reach an extension with the Padres.
The Padres are likely to trade Cease and get something out of a trade package instead of losing him for nothing, as Bleacher Report's Zachary Rymer believes. Rymer lists Cease as one of the top ten players likely to be traded in 2025. The Cubs are one of four teams mentioned that are linked to him.
The Cubs are one of the more interesting teams heading into the season. They have assembled a talented roster to compete for an NL Central title. The Cubs have the money to spend on high-quality players, but they refuse to be one of the top spenders. This is a key reason the Cubs missed out on former Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman's signing.
If the Cubs want to be one of the most feared teams in the NL and keep up with some of their rival big-market teams, they will have to be able to sign players to lucrative deals.
They can start with Cease, one of the most underrated pitchers in the league. In his only season with the Padres last year, Cease posted a 3.47 ERA in 33 games and 189.1 innings pitched. Cease allowed only 137 hits, 80 runs, 18 home runs, and 65 walks while recording 224 strikeouts.
It was his best season since 2022 when he finished second in the Cy Young Award voting. Cease was one of the best players for an embarrassing White Sox team during the first five years of his MLB career. He is showing his potential with the Padres, but he could gain more exposure by being one of the top pitchers for a big-market team like the Cubs.
