Fresh off securing a playoff spot for the first time since 2020, the Chicago Cubs enter the winter with an unusually broad spectrum of possibilities.
The easiest path would be to run it back in the infield. All four expected starters—Nico Hoerner at second, Dansby Swanson at short, Michael Busch at first, and Matt Shaw at third—just delivered encouraging campaigns. Yet for the second consecutive offseason, persistent rumors continue to connect the club to three-time All-Star third baseman Alex Bregman.
Should Bregman actually sign in the North Side, at least one current piece would need to find a new position or a new address.
The only realistic candidate to be displaced is Hoerner, who just wrapped up the finest season of his career. The 27-year-old earned down-ballot MVP consideration for the first time, claimed his second Gold Glove, and posted an impressive 6.2 WAR.
With Hoerner now entering the final year of the three-year, $35 million extension he inked in March 2023, at least one prominent insider believes a blockbuster move isn’t off the table.
On Saturday, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand named one trade candidate from each organization and landed on Hoerner for Chicago, citing both the second baseman’s contract status and the organization’s rising prospect depth.
“Hoerner is in the final year of the three-year, $35 million extension he signed in March 2023, and while he may not be a likely trade candidate, his situation features the kind of ingredients that make him an ideal trade fit,” Feinsand wrote.
“Hoerner’s elite defense, consistency at the plate and leadership make him a valued member of the Cubs, but Matt Shaw could slide over to second base, opening third base for any number of available options this offseason.”
Beyond the looming free agency, Hoerner’s skill set overlaps heavily with existing team strengths: elite glove work, high contact rates, and plus speed on the bases. Trading him could allow president Jed Hoyer to chase a middle-of-the-order masher—Bregman chief among them—particularly with right fielder Kyle Tucker almost certain to depart when the market opens.
That said, players who produce six wins before their 28th birthday rarely hit the trade block. As Feinsand himself notes, dealing Hoerner would qualify as a genuine stunner around the league.
For a Cubs front office that has spent years preaching patience and player development, moving their homegrown All-Star-level second baseman would signal an abrupt philosophical pivot—and perhaps the clearest indication yet that the club believes its contention window is cracking open right now.
