With the 2025 MLB season upon us, insiders and experts have begun weighing in on which organizations as a whole are under pressure in this upcoming season. According to those insiders, Jed Hoyer, Craig Counsell, and the Chicago Cubs have been voted on as the team with the second most amount of pressure this season, trailing only the Toronto Blue Jays.

That pressure is well deserved and warranted, as Chicago has not been to the postseason since the 2020 COVID year and it has not won 90 games in a season since 2018. Counsell is in his second year as Cubs manager, and he will hope to help his team improve from their win total of 83 in 2024. Chicago has had quite the offseason, and the front office has given Counsell all the tools for a successful season.

The Cubs have acquired Kyle Tucker, Ryan Pressly, Matthew Boyd, Colin Rea, and others via trade or free agency, with the Tucker deal the most impactful. Tucker is considered a superstar around the league and that is exactly the type of player the Cubs have desperately needed over the last several seasons. He is also well aware of what Cubs fans will be expecting in 2025.

With all the pieces in place, this feels like a make-or-break season for the Cubs organization as a whole. A trip back to the postseason must happen or else the Cubs will be looked at as the mediocre team that can get so close to the postseason but just can’t make it in.