The Chicago Cubs made a managerial change ahead of the 2024 season in hopes that Craig Counsell at the helm would be the final piece to get the club back into the playoffs.

The Cubs would go 83-79 in 2024, the same exact record they had in 2023 with David Ross as manager, and finished one game further back of the Milwaukee Brewers for the National League Central title.

Chicago needs to make a splash in free agency this winter to help put them over the top, but they do hold good contracts on their 2025 payroll.

Here are their four best.

Projected: One-Year, $7.9 Million Through Arbitration

Starting pitcher Justin Steele has been a key piece of the roster since his breakout 2022 campaign that saw the lefty post a 3.18 ERA across 119 innings.

He has shown he can consistently produce on the mound, though injuries have been an issue so far, and have held him to only 427 innings across 78 starts since the beginning of 2022.

Steele still has posted a 3.10 ERA in that span with 437 strikeouts and a 134 ERA+, so he is capable of contending for the NL Cy Young Award over any fully healthy season like he showed in 2023.

He is in his second year of arbitration eligibility, and Spotrac projects the lefty to earn $7,950,000 through arbitration, making him a steal any team would love to have in their rotation.

2B Nico Hoerner

Two years, $23.5 Million

The Cubs signed Nico Hoerner to a three-year, $35 million extension in 2023 that began in 2024 and runs through the 2026 campaign.

Known more for his glove than his bat, the second baseman has produced a total of 58 Outs Above Average since debuting in 2019 per Baseball Savant, with 37 coming at second base.

He is a perennial Gold Glove candidate, and he provides offensive production that is slightly above league average with a career OPS+ of 100, and a 103 OPS+ across the last four years combined.

Injuries plagued the middle infielder early in his career, but Hoerner has posted 150 or more starts in each of the last two campaigns, and Chicago has been all the better for it.

Two years, $38 Million

Seiya Suzuki signed a five-year, $85 million deal with the Cubs ahead of the 2022 season to make his way to MLB and face new challenges.

While he is not the slugger he was expected to be, he has still posted 55 home runs since debuting and carries a career 128 OPS+.

Suzuki’s role began shifting this past year into being more of a designated hitter, and with the plethora of outfielders the club has on its roster combined with his defensive struggles, this may be the best path forward for both sides.

The veteran has dealt with injuries during his time in MLB, too, never playing in more than 138 games, so being a full time DH could help in that aspect as well.

SP Shota Imanaga

One-Year, $13.2 Million; Could Be Four-Years, $60.7 Million If Options Exercised

Much like Suzuki, Shota Imanaga signed a deal with Chicago to face the best hitters in the sport.

Imanaga finished his rookie campaign in 2024 with a 2.91 ERA across 173 1/3 innings in 29 starts with 174 strikeouts and a 137 ERA+.

His showing was good enough for an All-Star nod, a fifth-place finish in National League Cy Young Award voting, and a fourth place finish in NL Rookie of the Year voting.

The Cubs could have Imanaga on their roster for only one more year, as his deal has two mutual options for 2026 and 2027 at $15.2 million each, and if he pitches anywhere near as good as he did in 2024, he is sure to decline his side of the option.

Even with the options, with the production that Imanaga had in 2024, even just one more season of that at $13.2 million makes Imanaga one of the best bargain pitchers in Major League Baseball.

All figures accurate as of Dec. 2