Cubs Predicted to Pursue Veteran Defensive Specialist Catcher in Free Agency

The Chicago Cubs could bring in a veteran to bolster their depth at catcher.

Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Chicago Cubs have problems in numerous areas coming off four straight seasons missing the playoffs along with five of the last six seasons ending with no postseason baseball in Wrigleyville.

As Jed Hoyer and ownership get ready to try to re-tool and improve things on the roster in what will be a critical offseason for the team, one area on the team that has been a massive issue is the depth at the catcher position. Miguel Amaya essentially has the starting spot locked up following a 2024 season that was really his first full year in the big leagues, but the position was a black hole in the games that Amaya didn't play in.

Chicago acquired veteran Christian Bethancourt from the Marlins at the deadline who performed decently in his 24 games played for the Cubs, but it was likely a rental for the team as Bethancourt gets set to hit free agency himself. Since we know Hoyer and Tom Ricketts love to shop the bargain bin for potential production, one possible name as a plug in at the backup catcher spot is the 29-year-old Danny Jansen. Zach Pressnell of FanSided named Jansen as a possible budget friendly alternative acquistion for Chicago as the team approaches free agency.

"The best possible option for the Cubs would be Danny Jansen because of how cheap he would be to acquire," Pressnell wrote. "His pop time isn't great, but he provides one of the best blocking skill sets in the game. The Cubs would be signing him under the idea that they think they could turn his career back around as a backup to Amaya."

Jansen has played seven years the the major league level all with the Toronto Blue Jays until the team traded him to Boston at the deadline this year. He has never been extremely impressive at the plate with a .220 average in over 500 games played. His two best career seasons came in 2022 and 2023 where over the two seasons he had 32 home runs in 158 games played.

The Cubs wouldn't be bringing Jansen in with any sort of hope that he's going to rake at the plate, but he is extremely reliable defensively and at the price he could be had for Chicago, acquiring the veteran could make a lot of sense. Jansen isn't a name that Chicago fans would be ecstatic about, but he's a solid player and could prove to be a contributor for very little financial commitment.