Boy oh boy, what a roller coaster of a season for the Chicago Cubs. After coming out of the gates with blown-out tires going just 19-23 by mid-May, the Cubs did pull it together and cobble together what appeared to be a playoff season.
If only. The Cubs, on September 1, had a 97% chance of making the postseason according to FanGraphs. On October 1? Zero. The team was officially eliminated on Saturday night.
Perhaps it's for the best. The Cubs were 38-50 against teams with a record of .500 or better. They were a likely early exit in the postseason. Still, sneaking into the playoffs gives fans a great feeling of hope. Now? The Cubs don't have much of that.
That becomes even more true when you consider the fact that the Cubs will likely say goodbye to some of these key faces in 2024.
Don't expect to see these 3 Cubs as home players at Wrigley Field next year.
David Ross
Fully transparently, I could see this going either way. David Ross might be back in 2024, but if I'm a guessing man, I say his four-year stop is done after this year. Cubs fans sure want him gone.
Chicago won just a single NL Central title under his leadership, and he had a so-so .480 win-loss record as a manager.
Nothing stands out more, though, than one stat: Zero playoff wins under Ross.
Gabe Kapler is available, a manager Chicago interviewed for Ross's job in 2019, and many other managers will likely be on the job market soon this offseason. There will be upgrades available, or at least changes of face that might bring a needed refresh to the clubhouse.
Early this year, Ross's seat was described as cool to the touch. It's possible Chicago tries to see him through at least one more year.
Marcus Stroman
Marcus Stroman put together a masterclass of a first five months of the season, only to struggle with injury and returning to play on the back end of things. But for a while, Stroman, in what will likely wind up being a contract year (he has one more year, but a player opt-out he is likely to exercise), was a proper ace and put together a Cy Young nominee season.
Stroman, as he excelled, was repeatedly clear that he wanted to sign an in-season extension to stay with the Cubs. Chicago, who had just committed lame money to Jameson Taillon in free agency, could not in good faith offer a 32-year-old pitcher likely about to pass his prime a sizable amount of money.
That has proven prescient, as Stroman already appears to have passed the hump of where he was just earlier this season, closing the final month of the season with a 4.00 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Stroman's early season heroics likely did enough to prove he is worth a 2-to-3 year deal with some team that will pay him an exorbitant fee to fill out their pitching rotation. The Cubs, having just extended money to Ian Happ midseason and free agents like Taillon before that, need to use the rest of their spending wisely.
If they can justify a big spend, it needs to be focused on getting one player in particular back, not Stroman...
Cody Bellinger
This one stings, because it's one of the best gambles the Cubs front office has taken in recent memory. Yes, Cody Bellinger was a former All-Star, but he was clearly not the batter he used to be, and there was every reason to pass on giving him the $17.5 million the Cubs opted to pay for his one-year deal in 2023.
Instead, they believed in him, Wrigley stood behind him, and he put together one of the best reclamation seasons in recent history. Bellinger's 133 OPS+ is his best since 2019 when he won the National League MVP. He also logged six outs above average and played both center fielder and first base when needed.
Unfortunately, he played so well he'll now command money the Cubs won't be able to justify. Some wealthy team will see what he did this year and opt to pay him what is probably too much money across several years. Bellinger has indicated he loves Wrigley and the fans in Chicago, but this figures to be his last chance at getting a big long-term deal. He needs to cash in.
The Cubs will get priced out, but the Bellinger season should be remembered as one of the wisest things the front office has done in a long time.
