Assuming Alex Bregman is Just a Nice Thought, Here's the Infielder the Cubs Should Really Sign

In a perfect world, the Cubs would sign Alex Bregman this month, as he accepts the reality that no long-term deal is forthcoming and becomes more open to a short-term one with player options attached. They'd create a few small problems for themselves, like giving up draft capital and international free-agent bonus allotments (plus needing to move another player's salary, to keep space open for further pitching investments), but that would be a fun way to finish off a promising but not yet thrilling overall offseason.

Alas, this is no perfect world, and it's still more likely that Bregman lands with one of the powerhouses out east—the Mets, the Red Sox, or the Yankees, all of whom could (in various ways) fit him into their roster with one or two fewer hiccups. Meanwhile, with the money they do have left to spend, the Cubs seem more focused on bolstering their pitching staff, and with good reason. Who, then, would be the right fit on a much lower-dollar free-agent deal, to give the team the depth and versatility they still need on the bench? I'll give you a hint: Like Bregman, he owns two World Series rings.

Enrique Hernández isn't an especially good player anymore. That's ok. He's also not a bad player; his utility depends more on the needs of the team who signs him than anything else. If you need a starter, or a player with dynamism and upside, Hernández is not a good fit. If, however, you need an absolute gem of a teammate who can also play plus defense at multiple positions, moonlight at even the toughest places on the diamond, and hit just a little when the lights get bright, then he's perfect. 

He'll turn 34 this August, and since the start of 2022, he's batted just .230/.287/.356, making him something like 20 percent worse than an average hitter. He used to be more patient and have more power, but those skills have faded. He does make contact at a solid rate, but hot streaks and grind-it-out at-bats are getting rare for him. When called upon, though, Hernández plays his very best defense at third base, where he might be most useful to the 2025 Cubs. He can still get by in center field or at shortstop, on a short-term basis, and he's solid at second base or in either outfield corner. Plus, when October comes, he lights up like a jack-o'-lantern. He has a career .874 postseason OPS, and that hasn't fallen off even as his overall performance has declined.

Beloved with the Dodgers, Hernández left for a bit as a free agent, but has been back there the last year and a half, and it was widely assumed he'd like to return there again this winter. Now, though, they've added Hyeseong Kim to their infield, committed to playing Mookie Betts there, and still have Miguel Rojas, Tommy Edman, Teoscar Hernández, Michael Conforto and Andy Pages. There's no obvious place for Hernández on their projected roster; he might have to seek a new home again.

The Cubs would be a perfect fit. They're an upstart team with a good mix of veterans with whom Hernández figures to have much in common and younger players on whom he might be a positive influence. They need someone who can step in if catastrophe strikes, in the form of Matt Shaw being unable to make the major adjustments left before him fast enough to succeed in MLB as a rookie, and a backup center fielder for Pete Crow-Armstrong. Hernández also brings a little bit of something else the team currently seems to lack: a good-natured red-ass intensity, coupled with some earned swagger.

It's becoming a tiresome refrain, I know, but the Cubs still have a lot of options for finishing off their winter shopping well enough to enter the season as heavy favorites in the NL Central and viable competitors with at least some of the NL's Big Five. They have to spend some money or some young talent to add top-tier talent to their pitching staff, but when it comes to the position players, they can afford to prioritize fit, cost, and intangibles, unless a better opportunity presents itself. The lingering possibility that Bregman might fall into their laps has slowed the front office's move toward any commitment to that 10th regular or first bench role, but if he goes elsewhere, Hernández should get the team's first call.