4 Cubs Leaving Chicago in the New Year
By Jovan Alford
After a disappointing 2024 season in the northside of Chicago, the Chicago Cubs will hope that 2025 will be better for them as they’ve been active this offseason. The Cubs finished tied for the second-best record in the NL Central with the St. Louis Cardinals (83-79) but ended the season six games out of the final spot in the NL Wild Card.
With another tough end to the season, Chicago made notable upgrades to its roster last month, signing free-agent starting pitcher Matthew Boyd to a two-year deal to bolster the rotation.
The Cubs also acquired three-time All-Star Kyle Tucker in a huge deal from the Houston Astros, sending Isaac Parades, Hayden Wesneski, and Cam Smith to Houston. Tucker’s addition made veteran outfielder Cody Bellinger expendable, who was traded days later to the New York Yankees for reliever Cody Poteet.
Based on these moves and the players from last year’s team returning for 2025, the Cubs hope better days are ahead for the franchise. However, if things don’t go well again for Chicago and they don’t make the playoffs, we could see several players not with the team either during the 2025 season or after it wraps up.
1. Kyle Tucker
Even though the Cubs just traded for Tucker, it’s not guaranteed that he will re-sign with the club after this season. The 27-year-old outfielder is scheduled to become a free agent after the 2025 season.
When the All-Star slugger was introduced to the Chicago media a couple of weeks ago, Tucker didn’t give a straight down the line answer about his future with the team.
“I'm always open to talks and see where it leads,” Tucker said (h/t ESPN’s Jesse Rogers). “You never know what the future is going to hold. We'll see how things progress."
It’s not a surprise that Tucker didn’t outright commit to re-signing with the Cubs as he doesn’t know how things will play out in the Windy City. If he plays well, Chicago might be inclined to offer Tucker an extension to keep him at Wrigley Field for the foreseeable future.
However, Tucker could also decline an extension and try his hand in free agency, especially if he puts together an All-Star season. Last year with the Astros, Tucker only played in 78 games due to a shin injury.
Despite playing in a limited number of games, the veteran outfielder hit .289 with 23 home runs and 49 RBI. But when healthy, Tucker is an MVP candidate as we saw in 2023.
Tucker finished fifth in AL MVP voting as he slashed .284/.369/.517 with 29 home runs and 112 RBI (career-high). If he can come close to those numbers in ‘25 with the Cubs, Chicago may be competing for a playoff spot, which will help Tucker’s case in free agency or potentially getting a contract extension.