Chicago Cubs Predicted to Pursue This Major Offseason Upgrade

The Chicago Cubs are being predicted to pursue one major upgrade during the MLB offseason.

Jan 12, 2024; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer talks to the media after introducing pitcher Shota Imanaga (not pictured) during a press conference at Loews Chicago Hotel. / Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Cubs have been playing great baseball of late in their pursuit of an improbable late-season run to get into the postseason.

While fans have been having fun watching the team play at a high level, the likelihood is that they will end up missing the playoffs. They still have a small chance to make a playoff run happen, but that would take a lot of winning and help from multiple other teams.

More than likely, the Cubs will head into the offseason after missing the playoffs looking to add talent and make some changes to get back into contention next year.

One potential position that the front office could look to upgrade is at catcher.

Miguel Amaya has been making a case of late to be the future at catcher, but that won't necessarily be the route the team chooses to go. Moises Ballesteros has been turning heads in the minor leagues as well.

Chicago could opt to stand pat and keep Amaya and Ballesteros as their catching options.

That being said, Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic believes that they will still consider pursuing an upgrade at catcher.

"Amaya has certainly given them more to think about, though. At a minimum, he’s strengthened the organization’s belief that he can be a really good backup or part of a timeshare. As of now, upgrading at catcher will still be a priority. It’s simply too risky to rely on a few months of information. But Amaya seems to be building a case to be a part of the team’s future. And he’s got another month to continue to build his case."

Sharma makes a great point. Even though Amaya has been impressive late in the season, the majority of the season saw dismal production from the catcher position.

If the Cubs do look to bring in an upgrade at catcher, they will have slim pickings in free agency. There aren't many upgrade caliber players available.

Danny Jansen, Gary Sanchez, Elias Diaz, and Carson Kelly aren't very enticing options.

A trade for a catcher seems like the most likely option for an upgrade.

Expect to see Chicago be aggressive during the offseason. They're tired of losing and missing the playoffs.

Hoyer will be looking to change some things up and put the team in position to contend in 2025. It will be interesting to see what his plan entails and what he can get done.