The Chicago Cubs have been off to an excellent start to the 2025 MLB season. After drawing the toughest schedule of any team at any point to begin the season, the Cubs came out the other side unschactehd. After Thursday’s win in Pittsburgh, Chicago sits at 19-13 and owns a two-game lead in the National League Central over the Milwaukee Brewers.
The best offense in Baseball?
Not only has the Cubs’ win/lose record been impressive, but their offense has been the best in the Major Leagues. Chicago currently leads all of MLB in runs (192) and Stolen Bases (44). They also rank top three in OPS (.799), SLG (.457), homers (46), and walks (128).
Chicago’s offense has seen major improvements from players like Pete Crow-Armstrong, Carson Kelly, Michael Busch, and Seiya Suzuki. But no player in the Cubs lineup has been as impactful as superstar right-fielder Kyle Tucker.
A superstar in the lineup
After being acquired this past offseason, Tucker has been everything the Cubs could have dreamed of and more. He is currently slashing .278/.387/.563 for a .950 OPS and 167 WRC+. He has accumulated 1.4 bWAR in just 32 games.
The three-time All-Star has been the “Star” that the Cubs have lacked since they depleted their World Series core.
But the elephant in the room is his contract situation. You see, the Houston Astros traded away Tucker with just one year left of team control. This means he is in line to hit the free agent market at the end of the season.
For Chicago, they would greatly prefer to extend Tucker in-season. This would avoid the mayhem of bidding against other teams on the open market. But doing so may require offering him an extension he cannot refuse. And based on a recent report, they may be planning to do whatever they can to make that a reality.
An optimistic report
Speaking on the latest episode of the Cubs REKAP Podcast, Chicago native David Kaplan seemed optimistic that the Cubs will find a way to get a deal done with Kyle Tucker.
“I’m hearing that the Cubs have wrapped their brain around ‘Whatever it costs, we’re paying it.’ Kaplan added, “And they want to keep Tucker.”
Later in the episode, Kaplan doubled down on his reporting to co-host Gordon Wittenmyer.
“I believe wholeheartedly they will get the deal done with him *if he wants to be here.* I believe they are convinced they gotta break the bank for him.”
This is arguably the first real report we have heard regarding the Cubs’ interest in extending Tucker. We all assume the Cubs front office wants to get a deal done, but the question was whether or not they would cough up the money necessary to do so.
As Kaplan made it sound, the price is no longer a contentious subject. They understand they have to write a blank check to keep Tucker long-term.
While there have been whispers here and there that the Cubs may or may not have begun negotiations with the All-Star outfielder, nothing has been confirmed.
Signing Tucker to a long-term extension could provide Cubs President of Baseball Operations, Jed Hoyer, with the major win he needs to earn a contract extension himself.
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