Inside The Cubs

Why Would Ohtani Avoid Signing With Chicago Cubs?

The Chicago Cubs may no longer be in a prime position to land Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani.

Kade Kistner

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
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There has been seemingly endless chatter for months that the Chicago Cubs could be in the mix for either trading for Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani or signing him in free agency. 

Those rumblings only grew after the Cubs started off the season hot with their new-look squad. 

But as The Athletic pointed out in a recent column, those rumblings almost certainly have to quiet now. 

As many have speculated, the teams that pursued Ohtani when he first came from Japan, and there was mutual interest, could be the key to where the phenom ends up next. 

One of those was the Cubs.

But as the article points out, this Chicago team is a long way from where they were going into the 2018 MLB season during their original pursuit. And right now, things are fairly bleak:

"But there is not the same buzz about the Cubs, no clear progress toward October baseball in Wrigleyville, no obvious hook for Ohtani as he tries to win World Series rings and polish his resume for Cooperstown.

"All that doesn’t necessarily mean the Cubs are doomed. It’s easy to dunk on the Cubs at this moment and lose sight of the bigger picture. Team officials have long viewed 2024 as more of a breakthrough year, seeing this season as a chance to compete for a playoff spot if enough things fell into place. This isn’t an organization that’s about to fall off the kind of cliff that Hoyer wanted to avoid when he initiated this rebuild after the 2020 season, amid COVID-19-related budget cuts to baseball operations."

So until the Cubs can turn this thing around. Until they are truly contenders, the thought of adding Ohtani must be put on pause. 

In the simplest of terms: don't expect Chicago to make a blockbuster trade for the two-way superstar at the MLB trade deadline. 

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Kade Kistner
KADE KISTNER

Kade Kistner is the publisher and beat writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Cubs. An alumnus of Tulane University, Kade graduated in 2017 with a degree in Latin American Studies and a minor in Spanish. Upon graduation, Kade commissioned into the United States Navy and attended Naval Flight School in Pensacola, Fl. He served as a Naval Aviator and was stationed in Jacksonville, Fl. During his time in school and the Navy, Kade began covering the MLB and NFL with USA Today, SB Nation, and Sports Illustrated. Kade covered the New Orleans Saints, Texas Rangers, and numerous other teams within the Sports Illustrated network before launching Inside the Phillies, Inside the Astros, and Inside the Cubs. You can follow him on Twitter at @KadeKistner, or if you have any questions or comments he can be reached via email at kwkistner@gmail.com.

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