The Chicago Cubs shocked the baseball world when they completed a trade with the Houston Astros last offseason centered around star right fielder Kyle Tucker. The price to land the All-Star, despite him being under his final year of team control, was not cheap.

2024 first-round pick Cam Smith, controllable third baseman Isaac Paredes and versatile pitcher Hayden Wesneski were sent to the Astros as part of the deal. It ended up being a solid haul for Houston.

Smith blew away all expectations in spring training, forcing his way into the Opening Day lineup as the starting right fielder in Tucker’s place. Paredes was an All-Star again. Unfortunately, Wesneski suffered an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery.

Parting with that amount of value certainly gives the impression that the Cubs are going to do everything they can to retain Tucker long-term. If he ends up being one-and-done, there will be some serious regret about how the franchise handled the rest of their winter and the MLB trade deadline this year.

Alas, there are wide-ranging opinions about whether Chicago’s ownership will be willing to pay the high price tag Tucker will command. He could easily surpass $400 million given his track record, age and future projections.

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A bidding war is the last thing the Cubs will want to be embroiled in, but that could be where things are headed. And their chances of winning such a standoff likely aren’t very high, especially since Chicago isn’t even the No. 1-ranked landing spot for him heading into the winter.

Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report placed the Cubs at No. 3 in his Tucker landing spot rankings. They are behind the Philadelphia Phillies, who are No. 2, and the Los Angeles Dodgers, who are ranked No. 1.

The Phillies could be a dangerous suitor because Dave Dombrowski has shown a willingness to spend money and make aggressive splashes. They have their own superstar hitting free agency in Kyle Schwarber.

Should he depart, pivoting to Tucker makes a lot of sense. He would help replace the middle-of-the-order production that Schwarber provides, but is almost five years younger and makes an impact with his base running and glove, not just his bat.

There isn’t a salary number that scares the Dodgers. If there is a player they want, they will spend whatever it takes to acquire them. With a need in the outfield, Tucker could very well be their No. 1 target.

Adding him to a lineup that already includes Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernandez, Andy Pages, Will Smith and Max Muncy would be like playing the MLB The Show video game on easy mode.

Additional threats rounding out the top five potential landing spots include the New York Yankees and the San Francisco Giants.

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