Chicago Cubs Target Agrees to Deal With Crosstown Rival Chicago White Sox

One of the Chicago Cubs targets has now agreed to a deal with the Chicago White Sox.

Jul 31, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Seattle Mariners third baseman Josh Rojas (4) rounds the bases after hitting a home run against the Boston Red Sox in the fifth inning at Fenway Park / David Butler II-Imagn Images

The Chicago Cubs have been busy looking to create the best roster possible ahead of next season.

While that included two massive decisions to acquire Kyle Tucker and trade Cody Bellinger to the New York Yankees, those have largely been their lone notable moves since the rest have revolved around bolstering their organizational depth.

Pitching will continue to be something the Cubs target before Opening Day, but the main question they now have is regarding their third base position.

Top prospect Matt Shaw seems to have a real chance of winning that job, but Chicago isn't ready to commit to that just yet with them still eyeing other options.

Someone they were reportedly interested in signing was Josh Rojas.

The veteran infielder is coming off a resurgent year with the Seattle Mariners, and his strong defense would be something coveted by the entire organization.

But, Rojas is no longer on the market.

According to Scott Merkin of MLB.com, he has agreed to a one-year deal with the Chicago White Sox. No terms were reported at the time of writing.

This was always an interesting fit on paper.

Rojas would provide the Cubs elite defense at multiple positions across the infield and be a security blanket in case Shaw was struggling on offense or defense during his debut campaign.

The White Sox are in a rebuild after putting up a historically poor season in 2024, so as they wait for some of their own top prospects to be ready for Major League Baseball, bringing in players like Rojas seems to be their strategy for the time being.

How the Cubs pivot from this isn't clear.

Perhaps Rojas was their only infielder target and they are comfortable going into the spring with the current crop of players on their roster, or maybe they look for someone with a similar profile.