The Chicago Cubs made up for their lack of interest in high-end free agents by trading for the best player on the trade market, Kyle Tucker. The trade involved clear risk with Tucker entering his final year of club control, but for a Cubs team in dire need of star-level talent, the risk is worth taking. Adding Tucker to this team makes them legitimate threats to win the NL Central.
Unfortunately for Cubs fans excited about this acquisition, Jed Hoyer gave the entire fan base a reason to be concerned about his future with the team before he even suited up for a game.
According to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers, Tucker and the team failed to agree on a deal for the 2025 season in what is his third and final season in arbitration. The Cubs filed at $15 million, with Tucker’s camp requesting $17.5 million. The Cubs are taking their new star to arbitration before he even plays an inning for them over a mere sum of $2.5 million.
The Cubs and newly acquired OF Kyle Tucker could not come to an agreement on a salary for 2025, per a source. The Cubs filed at $15 mil. Tucker's camp at $17.5 mil.
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) January 10, 2025
Jed Hoyer appears motivated to ruin Cubs-Kyle Tucker trade in record time
There simply is no excuse for this. The Cubs are beginning what they hope will be a long and fruitful relationship with Tucker by taking him to arbitration over just $2.5 million. Remember, this is the same franchise that gave Carson Kelly double that for multiple years just a month ago. This is also the same franchise that traded Cody Bellinger away in what was purely a salary dump. Since that trade, the Cubs have not re-invested any of the money that they saved into making the team better.
Arbitration is a process no player or team wants to go through. Corbin Burnes was very vocal about how an arbitration hearing ruined his relationship with the Milwaukee Brewers. The Cubs are essentially going to begin their relationship with Tucker by arguing that he isn’t worth what he’s asking for. That’s a very dangerous game to play with anyone, let alone a brand-new superstar. The Cubs are risking that same thing happening to them that happened with Burnes over such a small sum of money.
Once Tucker officially becomes a free agent, there’s a good chance he’ll receive around or even upwards of $500 million. Cubs fans had hoped that their team would be the one to give Tucker that massive pile of cash to ensure he spends the remainder of his career in Chicago, but if they’re arguing over $2.5 million, what makes anyone think they’ll meet his free agency demands?
If the Cubs are willing to meet or exceed Tucker’s demands, then this whole arbitration process probably won’t matter much. Again, though, there’s little reason to believe that they’ll do that if they’re arguing over $2.5 million.
Even if the Cubs believe Tucker should only be making $15 million in 2025, it isn’t worth potentially alienating what they hope to be their franchise player for a long time over a $2.5 million difference. The best way to get Tucker on their good side ahead of free agency would’ve been by swallowing their pride and forking over the extra $2.5 million Tucker wanted. Unfortunately, there’s no way to spin this as a positive for the Cubs.
