https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/page/54/?d=1News: Newsenhttps://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/on-deadline-day-for-tendering-contracts-to-arbitration-eligible-players-cubs-have-work-to-do-r4466/Under no circumstances will the Cubs non-tender Justin Steele or Javier Assad Friday. Though Steele is unlikely to make it back from Tommy John surgery until midsummer, he's a vital part of their medium-term pitching plans. Both he and Assad, who is arbitration-eligible for the first time and pr...4466Fri, 21 Nov 2025 12:18:02 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/evaluating-the-cubs-corner-infield-depth-for-2026-r4458/Among the developments that took shape for the 2025 Chicago Cubs was the establishment of long-term options on either side of the infield dirt. Coming off an impressive rookie campaign in 2024, Michael Busch further cemented himself as the team's first baseman of the future. His offensive output...4458Thu, 20 Nov 2025 23:02:42 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/is-michael-king-worth-what-he-would-cost-the-chicago-cubs-r4450/According to multiple reports, the Cubs are among the teams with significant interest in Michael King. That's just preliminary speculation, but it's interesting, because (according to a source familiar with their thinking) the Cubs still view signing King as an option even after Shota Imanaga ac...4450Thu, 20 Nov 2025 15:16:07 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/episode-38-will-cubs-free-agency-include-a-splash-add-r4447/Shota Imanaga accepted the qualifying offer to return to the Chicago Cubs. What does it mean for the rotation and could Chicago still go big game hunting for another arm?   Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-north-side-baseball-podcast/id1798599313...4447Thu, 20 Nov 2025 14:13:01 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/chronicling-the-1918-cubs-part-2-losing-an-ace-and-sweeping-the-giants-r4424/Welcome to part two of our offseason series covering the 1918 Chicago Cubs. In part one, we briefly recapped the 1917 season, examined the influence that World War 1 was potentially going to have on the 1918 season, and took a look at some of the big personnel changes the Cubs made. You can chec...4424Wed, 19 Nov 2025 12:57:02 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/chicago-cubs-add-3-players-to-40-man-roster-ahead-of-rule-5-draft-r4417/The Cubs made three additions to their 40-man roster Tuesday. Teams had a deadline of 6 PM Central to add players to their 40-man roster who would otherwise be exposed to the Rule 5 Draft, which is set to take place on December 10 at the MLB Winter Meetings. The Cubs selected left-handed pitcher...4417Wed, 19 Nov 2025 03:12:17 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/breaking-shota-imanaga-accepts-qualifying-offer-will-stay-with-cubs-for-22025-million-r4407/Shota Imanaga might have miscalculated a bit. He didn't think the Cubs would extend him the qualifying offer, so he turned down $15 million for 2026 with the right to earn either $15 million more in 2027 or $42 million more from 2027-28. Then again, the Cubs might have miscalculated, themselves....4407Tue, 18 Nov 2025 21:04:35 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/dream-cubs-free-agent-acquisitions-for-2025-2026-offseason-r4401/As the Chicago Cubs plot their course for the offseason, which free agent and trade targets should they prioritize pursuing? How would Dylan Cease or MacKenzie Gore look at the top of the rotation? Would Bo Bichette be a fit in the infield? How about Steven Kwan roaming the outfield? View the...4401Tue, 18 Nov 2025 14:57:00 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/the-cubs-wide-open-40-man-roster-will-fill-up-in-a-hurry-tuesday-r4398/It's Decision Day for Shota Imanaga, to whom the Cubs extended the qualifying offer two weeks ago. He doesn't currently count as a member of the organization, but if he accepts the offer, he'll go right back onto the 40-man roster. Right now, there's lots of room for him, but while he makes a de...4398Tue, 18 Nov 2025 14:07:02 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/ranger-su%C3%A1rez-is-exactly-jed-hoyers-type-is-that-a-pro-or-a-con-this-winter-r4377/If you'd gone looking for a distinctly Cubs-coded starting pitcher in the free-agent class two winters ago, you might well have come up with Shota Imanaga as tops on the list. He was a veteran starter with an elite walk rate and sneaky athleticism. Though not a strikeout artist, he showed the ab...4377Mon, 17 Nov 2025 12:37:01 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/chicago-cubs-want-to-build-more-pitching-depth-at-the-top-of-the-rotation-r4353/If we follow the rumor trail, it seems as though the Chicago Cubs are going to be big players in free agency this offseason. They currently have a qualifying offer out to Shota Imanaga worth more than $22 million, though it's believed he will decline it. Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma are rep...4353Sat, 15 Nov 2025 14:26:01 +0000https://diamondcentric.net/news-rumors/north-side-baseball/ian-happ-the-cub-vs-ian-happ-the-trade-candidate-r4338/Ian Happ is so much more than just the longest-tenured member of the Chicago Cubs. He's now a four-time reigning Gold Glover in left field, a remarkable achievement considering the team had no idea where to put him for the first five seasons of his career. He's also got a career 116 wRC+ and 20....4338Fri, 14 Nov 2025 15:06:02 +0000