It may be Super Bowl Sunday for some but today also serves as the first day of Spring Training for the Chicago Cubs.
Pitchers and catchers are due in Mesa as the Cubs start preparations for their 2025 season. A season where if the Cubs do not reach the postseason, a feat they have yet to accomplish since Jed Hoyer's bump to President of Baseball Operations, the offseason will be viewed as a failure.
Of course, even with pitchers and catchers reporting, the Cubs may not be done making moves. The Cubs remain among the serious suitors for free-agent third baseman Alex Bregman.
That is where we will begin in our quest to answer the biggest problems facing the Cubs as Spring Training starts.
Will the Chicago Cubs sign Alex Bregman?
Admittedly, this isn't as much of a problem as it is a luxury. The Cubs rightfully should be making an aggressive attempt to sign Bregman but if they don't land the All-Star third baseman, the roster is still capable of winning the National League Central. The guess here is that the Cubs sign Bregman to a creative deal that features a player-option or two. If there is one thing Scott Boras and Hoyer have proven, they are capable of finding common ground when no one else can. The longer Bregman remains on the market, the more likely it is the Cubs sign him.
Answer: Yes.
Who will be the Chicago Cubs fifth starter?
it's disappointing that the stated goal of the Cubs' offseason was to add an established starting pitcher who can slot near the top of their rotation but the only thing the team has come away with this winter has been Matthew Boyd and Colin Rea. Boyd is being paid as if he is a starting pitcher. This means four of the pitchers in the Cubs' rotation to open the season will be Justin Steele, Shota Imanaga, Jameson Taillon, and Boyd. That leaves Rea, Jordan Wicks, and Javier Assad as the likely options for the Cubs' fifth starter. Short of the Cubs making a surprising trade, it seems likely Assad will get the nod.
Answer: Javier Assad
Will the Chicago Cubs win 90 games in 2025?
With Craig Counsell as the manager, the former Milwaukee Brewers' mastermind made it clear that the goal should be to win 90 games each season. On the surface, Hoyer has acted as if that is the the goal he has at the end of the tunnel. Adding Kyle Tucker while stabilizing the bullpen with the additions of Ryan Pressly and Ryan Brasier has put the Cubs on a path to where they could win 90 games this season. Could is doing a lot of work in that sentence.
