Chicago Cubs Target With Craig Counsell Ties Linked to Los Angeles Dodgers

The Chicago Cubs will have competition with the Los Angeles Dodgers for the slugging shortstop.

Jul 23, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs third base Christopher Morel (5) and Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Willy Adames (27) talk before the game at Wrigley Field. / Matt Marton-Imagn Images

Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell has coached multiple players on the market this winter during his career.

None are bigger than Corbin Burnes, but Willy Adames, a shortstop who can swing it with the best of them, is also a free agent.

While Burnes is the second-best free agent on the market, Adames isn't too far behind him.

The Cubs could benefit from Counsell's connections in more ways than one. If they landed either play, they'd be excellent signings.

Adames' price will be drastically different from Burnes', but he'll still be expensive. Jim Bowden of The Athletic recently predicted he'd land a six-year, $150 million deal.

However, he added why the Los Angeles Dodgers are the ideal landing spot for the slugger.

"I expected Willy Adames to be traded to the Dodgers after Corey Seager departed as a free agent in 2021, but it never happened because the Brewers remained a contender and never made him available. With Adames now reaching free agency, the Dodgers should be viewed as heavy favorites to land him. President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman had Adames in his organization for a couple of years when he was GM of the Rays and has always been a big fan of the player. Adames is a perfect fit for the left side of the Dodgers’ infield."

If Chicago wants to sign Adames, which, from their perspective, would make perfect sense due to how poorly their offense performed last year, they might have to get creative defensively.

The Cubs' offense was so bad that they can't necessarily worry about where players play defensively.

Adames isn't an above-average defensive player by any means, which brings some worries about him sliding over to second base, but they could do so with Dansby Swanson.

Adames is better than Swanson, but Chicago will likely be stuck with his contract for the foreseeable future.

The 29-year-old Dominican Republic native is an elite offensive player. During the season, he slashed .251/.331/.462 with a 118 OPS+ and 32 home runs.

Outside of maybe two or three shortstops, there weren't many better than Adames.

The Cubs have other areas to fill, so spending $150 million on Adames might affect some of the moves they need to make. Still, landing him would do wonders for this offense.

He should have a strong market, so Chicago will have to make a big offer to land him.