The Chicago Cubs have already made two big-time moves in MLB free agency, bringing in former NL MVP Cody Bellinger on a team-friendly contract while also adding veteran starting pitcher Jameson Taillon to the mix.
But it does not appear that front office head Jed Hoyer and Co. are done spending money quite yet. Chicago has been in on some of the biggest names on the shortstop market. With that thinning out big time following the signings of Trea Turner and Xander Bogaerts, the Cubs are now narrowing their focus down to one player.
According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, Chicago views Atlanta Braves star Dansby Swanson as their “most-realistic target.” The Cubs had shown interest in Carlos Correa, but it seems that things are heating up between the shortstop and the San Francisco Giants after they missed out on Aaron Judge.
Swanson, 28, would not be a bad plan for the retooling Cubs. He’s still only 28 years old and is coming off a tremendous two-year run with Atlanta. That included hitting .277 with 25 homers, 96 RBI and a .776 OPS in 2022.
Related: MLB free agent tracker
Chicago Cubs could wrap up MLB free agency with one more big-ticket signing
Chicago is coming off an ugly 88-loss season. With that said, the team does have a nice amount of young talent. Adding Swanson to the mix would enable Nico Hoerner to move to second base. It would create a pretty solid trio of Hoerner, Swanson and Patrick Wisdom from second to third.
- Dansby Swanson stats (2016-22): .255 average, 102 HR, 411 RBI, .738 OPS
We also have to realize that the Chicago Cubs have a rotation to keep them in games following the acquisition of Taillon. He’ll join a starting group headlined by Marcus Stroman, Kyle Kendricks, Keegan Thompson and ample young arms.
In no way would this make the Cubs a playoff contender. Rather, they idea would be to get a long-term fixture with All-Star upside to play shortstop. Regardless of the cost, that would be seen as a big win in the Windy City.