Chicago Cubs: Breaking News, Rumors & Highlights

Cubs’ Bullpen Outlook Could Depend On 1 Bounce-Back Candidate

The Chicago Cubs' 2025 relief corps was one of the biggest surprises in all of baseball. The Cubs were expected to have one of the better bullpens last season.

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The Morning Bark

The Quiz of the Day

Chicago Cubs history unpacked — December 29

On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, Bleed Cubbie Blue is pleased to present a Cubs-centric look at baseball’s colorful past. Here’s a handy Cubs timeline, to help you follow the various narrative paths.

Kyle Tucker News / Viral Sports News / December 28

Chicago Cubs’ Kyle Tucker Dream Might Not Be Dead Yet

When the Chicago Cubs pulled off a major trade with the Houston Astros last offseason, acquiring outfielder Kyle Tucker in exchange for Isaac Paredes, Hayden Wesneski, and prospect Cam Smith, most analysts viewed it as a short-term move.

Chicago Cubs News / Legends On Deck / December 28

Chicago Cubs Need Starting Pitching

The Chicago Cubs need starting pitching. They need to bolster their rotation due to injuries and to maintain depth, and are determined to find and add a frontline pitcher.

Kyle Schwarber News / Yardbarker Quizzes

The 'Active MLB home run leaders' quiz

How many of the most prolific power hitters in baseball today can you name in 5 minutes?

The 'Last 40-home-run season by MLB team' quiz

The 'MLB All-Star Game MVPs' quiz

The '50-home-run MLB seasons' quiz

Kyle Tucker News / ChiCitySports / December 28

Cubs’ clever path to potential Kyle Tucker reunion revealed

When the Chicago Cubs swung a blockbuster trade to acquire Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros last offseason, just about everyone assumed Tucker would be a one-year affair.

Athletics News / Yardbarker

25 MLB players on the brink of stardom in 2026

The stars were out in full force during the 2025 World Series. From Max Scherzer in Toronto to Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, and of course, Shohei Ohtani, in Los Angeles, there was no shortage of the game's best under the brightest lights.

Phillies star 1B Bryce Harper takes a swipe at president Dave Dombrowski

Mets' continued pursuit of Bo Bichette, Alex Bregman faces one major obstacle

LF Tyler Soderstrom agrees to record contract extension with Athletics

25 MLB stars you probably didn't realize began their career with another team

The worst MLB teams from the 2000s

Anthony Rizzo News / Bleed Cubbie Blue / December 28

The fourth day of Cubsmas: Four postseason wins

On the first day of Cubsmas My true love gave to me An Anthony Rizzo retirement for the ages, On the second day of Cubsmas My true love gave to me A $2

Alex Bregman News / ChiCitySports / December 28

Chicago Cubs listed among favorites to land Alex Bregman, but…

The Chicago Cubs have hyper-focused on their bullpen this offseason, pushing to fill an obvious need after free agency and other roster decisions left just two of the NLDS relief corps still with the team.

MLB News / Cubs Insider / December 28

Hunter Harvey Represents Rare Gamble for Jed Hoyer, Makes Bullpen Even More Interesting

We’re used to the Cubs signing oft-injured pitchers to provide depth with a little upside, but seeing them do so with a guaranteed MLB contract is rare.

Chicago Cubs News / Chicago Cubs on SI / December 28

Cubs Get Encouraging Update In Potential Edward Cabrera Chase

While the Chicago Cubs are still expected to be in play for the best starting pitchers that are still available in free agency (namely Framber Valdez, Zac Gallen, Ranger Suarez, and Tatsuya Imai), Jed Hoyer and the rest of the front office could also improve their starting staff via trade.

Chicago Cubs News / ChiCitySports / December 28

Cubs linked to surprising move for former Cy Young frontrunner

The Chicago Cubs have a very solid starting rotation, but they could certainly use another arm. This is why the Cubs have been tabbed as frontrunners for Tatsuya Imai and have also been connected to trades for Miami Marlins pitchers Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera.

Chicago Cubs News / ChiCitySports / December 28

Report: Cubs pursuing splashy trade as alternative to Tatsuya Imai

The Chicago Cubs have been labeled one of the most likely landing spots for Japanese pitcher Tatsuya Imai, but based on the Cubs’ recent history when it comes to signing free agents, fans are understandably prepared for the worst.

MLB News / Yardbarker

The 25 greatest pitching seasons from the modern MLB era

America's favorite pastime has more memorable performances than any sport. As such, figuring out which pitchers had the best seasons ever is no easy task.

Jackie Robinson News / Bleed Cubbie Blue / December 28

Cubs historical sleuthing: Jackie Robinson Day edition

This one’s pretty easy, because it says “Jackie Robinson Day, April 15, 2007” on the message board beneath the Wrigley Field scoreboard. Credit again goes to BCB reader Clark Addison.

Owen Caissie News / Bleed Cubbie Blue / December 28

Chicago Cubs news and notes — Caissie, Harvey, Horton

You might think the Cubs should transition to starters now, having filled the bullpen with over-30 arms yet again. Ken Rosenthal believes in Owen Caissie.

Click here to get Yardbarker's Quiz of the Day emailed to you!

The 'NBA Christmas Day triple-doubles' quiz

The 'NFL rookie QBs to win a playoff game' quiz

The 'NBA Christmas Day 40-point games' quiz

The 'Most 3-passing, 1-rushing TD games' quiz

Chicago Cubs News / ChiCitySports / December 27

Cubs urged to consider bizarre trade with bitter NL Central rival

The Chicago Cubs have had an underwhelming MLB offseason thus far, which has become a trend fans have been very frustrated with in recent years. While Jed Hoyer and the front office have made a few solid depth signings, especially when it comes to the bullpen, no impact move has been made.

Chicago Cubs News / Chicago Cubs on SI / December 27

How Hunter Harvey Signing Could Shake Up The Cubs' Bullpen

It has always been clear that the Chicago Cubs' bullpen was going to look a lot different in 2026 than it did at the end of their 2025 campaign. The most obvious reason for this is that Taylor Rogers, Aaron Civale, Michael Soroka, Ryan Brasier, Caleb Thielbar, and Drew Pomeranz all became unrestricted free agents this winter.

Chicago Cubs News / Cubs Insider / December 27

Cubs Appear to Be Plotting Two Main Paths Forward This Winter

This is essentially a reiteration or clarification of some of the ideas we’ve been discussing for a while now, but it seemed worthwhile to revisit them while we wait for further developments.

Hunter Harvey News / Cubs Insider / December 27

Cubs Signing Reliever Hunter Harvey

The Cubs are signing relief pitcher Hunter Harvey, according to Will Sammon and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic. Harvey dealt with injuries throughout most of 2025, which limited him to just 10.2 innings across 12 games.

Chicago Cubs News / Bleed Cubbie Blue / December 27

Chicago Cubs news and notes — Cabrera, Gore, Tucker

This is traditionally one of the slowest weeks in Hot Stove Season. But January may bring some movement. *means autoplay on, (directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome). {$} means paywall.

Alex Bregman News / Chicago Cubs on SI / December 26

Cubs Fans Shouldn't Worry As Alex Bregman Predicted To Sign Elsewhere

The Chicago Cubs have been extremely vocal about their desire to improve their starting rotation this offseason. However, the organization has also been linked to an elite bat as they look to replace the production Kyle Tucker will take with him once he departs.

Kyle Tucker News / Cubs Insider / December 26

Kyle Tucker’s Perplexing Market Makes Cubs Reunion Slightly More Likely

Christmas is over, which means 2026 is right around the corner. Once the weekend passes, the hot stove should start warming back up to at least a lukewarm temperature.

Chris Gimenez News / Bleed Cubbie Blue / December 26

Cubs position player pitchers: Chris Gimenez

The Cubs had struggled early in 2018, but a 16-7 run from May 27 to June 20 had put them into a first-place tie with the Brewers at 42-29. Then they went on a disastrous road trip to Cincinnati and Los Angeles where they lost six of eight.

Chicago Cubs News / Chicago Cubs on SI / December 26

3 Players The Cubs Need Consistency From To Avoid 2025 Season Fate

The Chicago Cubs just posted their first 90+ win season since 2018 in what was easily their best year in recent memory. By the end of the season, Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Nico Hoerner all took home Gold Glove Awards, while Matt Shaw was named a finalist.