The Chicago Cubs released Mike Tauchman and Nick Madrigal before Friday’s deadline for offering contracts to arbitration-eligible players, saving a relatively small amount of money while trying to pump some new blood into their team.
Tauchman, a solid role player who grew up in the Chicago suburbs, appeared to be boxed out once Cody Bellinger opted into his contract with the Cubs for next season. A left-handed hitter who will turn 34 next month, Tauchman was in line to earn around $2.9 million through the arbitration system, according to estimates by MLB Trade Rumors.
Leading up to the 2023 trade deadline, it was Tauchman who made a spectacular, game-saving catch at the Busch Stadium wall to beat the St. Louis Cardinals, tipping the Cubs from likely sellers to motivated buyers. That switch happened at a time when Bellinger’s trade value was soaring.
MIKE TAUCHMAN SAVES THE GAME! pic.twitter.com/SXEy8qQhAe
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) July 29, 2023
Though the Cubs can again explore offers for Bellinger, their projected 2025 lineup seems largely set, barring a major trade. Their regular outfielders can be Bellinger, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Ian Happ with Seiya Suzuki consistently utilized as the designated hitter.
In that scenario, the club can create some opportunities for young talent such as Owen Caissie rather than give sporadic at-bats to Tauchman, who performed very well in a difficult role that won’t be easy for a rookie to handle.
Moving on from Madrigal was not a difficult decision. Injuries repeatedly sidelined the infielder who had been targeted as a key acquisition at the 2021 trade deadline. Carrying Madrigal on the 40-man roster all winter and matching his potential arbitration number ($1.9 million, per MLB Trade Rumors) didn’t make sense, especially when the Cubs have top prospect Matt Shaw knocking on the door.
The Cubs had high hopes for Madrigal when they finalized the Craig Kimbrel trade with the Chicago White Sox. But that potential — the White Sox had selected Madrigal with the No. 4 pick in the 2018 draft — never materialized. Across parts of three seasons with the Cubs, Madrigal hit .251 with two home runs and a .616 OPS.
Amid this round of roster reshuffling, the Cubs reached one-year agreements with pitchers Keegan Thompson and Julian Merryweather and catcher Matt Thaiss, who was just acquired from the Los Angeles Angels in a small deal for depth. Already this week, the club had cut former closer Adbert Alzolay, infielder Patrick Wisdom and Brennen Davis, who was once a consensus top-100 prospect in the entire sport.
As expected, the Cubs tendered arbitration-level contracts to All-Star pitcher Justin Steele, newly acquired reliever Eli Morgan, right-handed pitcher Nate Pearson and third baseman Isaac Paredes.
(Photo of Mike Tauchman: Quinn Harris / Getty Images)
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Patrick Mooney is a senior writer for The Athletic covering the Chicago Cubs and Major League Baseball. He spent eight seasons covering the Cubs across multiple platforms for NBC Sports Chicago/Comcast SportsNet, beginning in 2010. He has been a frequent contributor to MLB Network, Baseball America, MLB.com and the Chicago Sun-Times News Group. Follow Patrick on Twitter @PJ_Mooney
