Offseason Handbook: Ranking 6 Minor-League Free Agents Who Could Be Valuable Pitching Depth for Cubs

[Matthew Trueblood]

To win anything in 2025, the Chicago Cubs have to spend big money on pitching upgrades this winter. However, they also have to keep finding value in markets much less lucrative.

Image courtesy of © Philip G. Pavely-Imagn Images

If the team's front office is serious about contending, the Cubs will be major players for Max Fried, Roki Sasaki, and any number of second-tier pitchers who will be available via trade and free agency this winter. It's a clear need, and they have plenty of resources to allocate to that part of the roster. However, there are also valuable opportunities out there for teams this month, in the forms of the 500-plus players who became minor-league free agents five days after the end of the World Series.

These are players who have completed at least six professional seasons, or who have been previously outrighted, and who end the season in the minors but off the 40-man roster of the organization to whom they then belong. It's not a glamorous path to free agency, and every pitcher who becomes available this way comes with noticeable warts. However, that doesn't mean they don't have talent, or that they can't emerge as solid contributors. Last week, I wrote about why the Cubs should consider two outfielders who could be the heirs to the legacy of Rafael Ortega, a minor-league free agent after 2020 who blossomed for the Cubs (however briefly, and ultimately inconsequentially) in 2021 and 2022. Today, let's turn our attention to the pitching sector of the same market.

With players in this bracket, there's no expectation of big money being paid out. If a player is drawing interest from multiple clubs, it still tends to be tepid enough to avoid any bidding wars stretching even to $1 million. Usually, the winning inducement in such cases will be a slightly better incentive package, giving the player a bit more earning power if they have an unexpected breakout. Sometimes, getting a deal done can require a team to commit a 40-man roster spot to the player in question, but even that is very rare. By and large, these are the guys you sign to minor-league deals, with invites to big-league spring training and an opt-out date that works for both sides. They're the depth charges who can allow a team to act decisively when an opportunity or an urgent need arises, especially in the bullpen, before the trade market has had time to take shape. The Cubs could have used a couple of arms like the following half-dozen last year, when a rocky first few months from their relief corps thwarted their competitive vision.

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