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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-kyle-tucker-mic-drop-hot-streak-brutal-spring-training');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cubs’ Kyle Tucker has mic-drop moment amid hot streak after brutal spring training');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Kyle-Tucker-with-Chicago-Cubs-1.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Cubs’ Kyle Tucker has mic-drop moment amid hot streak after brutal spring training</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-04-03T06:29:53-07:00">April 3rd, 6:29am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-04-03T06:29:53-07:00">April 3rd, 6:29am</time><address><a>Christopher Hennessy</a>Christopher Hennessy graduated with a journalism degree from Fordham University in 2022. He has also worked at Spectrum News One in Albany, New York and with The Hockey Writers as a New York Islanders writer. Chris is originally from Connecticut and is a lifelong New York Yankees, Islanders, and Jets fan.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Cubs</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Chicago Cubs swept the Athletics in their first trip to Sacramento. Their 10-2 win on Wednesday was their fifth of the season, bringing them over .500 for the first time. Their <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/mlb-news-cubs-astros-both-earn-praise-for-kyle-tucker-trade">offseason was highlighted by Kyle Tucker, who came to the Cubs in a trade from the Houston Astros</a>. He had a poor spring training and a bad Tokyo Series, but has been dominant ever since. Tucker had his mic-drop moment after the game, per USA Today’s Bob Nightengale.</p><p>“I didn’t necessarily worry about it, but at the end of the day, it was spring training. I felt good in spring training.” Tucker said, “I hit some balls that I thought were hit well, and they just didn’t fall for a hit. So, I didn’t care too much. Besides, I’d rather show them during the season.”</p><p>The Cubs scored 35 runs in the three games against the Athletics and Tucker was a big reason why. He hit two homers, knocked in four runs, and scored six runs. The trade to get him was one of the biggest deals of the offseason, and the Cubs have to get a great season out of him to make it worth it. It’s been a good start despite a poor spring for Tucker.</p><h2><b>The Cubs’ tough schedule continues</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Kyle-Tucker-bat-flip.jpg"><figcaption>Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>There may be no more difficult way to start the season than<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/cubs-overreactions-ugly-tokyo-series-dodgers"> traveling to Japan to take on the Los Angeles Dodgers</a>. The Cubs lost both games but came back to the States with the same high expectations they left with. After splitting a four-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks, they traveled to Sacramento for the first time.</p><p>The ball was flying out of Sutter Health Park, mostly off of Cubs bats. The Athletics may be building something this year, but it was a tough series for the team against Chicago. But the NL Central favorites won’t have many slugfest games coming up. They are opening Wrigley Field for the 2025 season, and a cavalcade of NL powerhouses are walking through those doors.</p><p>The Cubs open Wrigley Field with a three-game series against the San Diego Padres. They are <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/san-diego-padres/padres-news-join-dodgers-historic-start-season-seen-22-years">7-0 after sweeps of the Atlanta Braves and Cleveland Guardians</a> to start the year. Their next opponents are the Texas Rangers, Dodgers again, Padres again, Diamondbacks again, and the Phillies. That is a who’s who of World Series contenders that could leave the Cubs with ground to make up.</p><p>If Kyle Tucker continues this stretch, the Cubs could get hot at just the right time.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cubs’ Kyle Tucker has mic-drop moment amid hot streak after brutal spring training

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-cubs-seiya-suzuki-accomplishment-vs-athletics');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cubs’ Seiya Suzuki hits major accomplishment vs. Athletics');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Seiya-Suzuki-hits-major-accomplishment-vs.-Athletics.jpg"></figure><h1>Cubs’ Seiya Suzuki hits major accomplishment vs. Athletics</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-04-02T20:27:59-07:00">April 2nd, 8:27pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-04-02T20:27:59-07:00">April 2nd, 8:27pm</time><address><a>Brayden Haena</a>Brayden Haena is an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints. He's a die-hard San Francisco Giants fan and a football fanatic. In addition to sports writing, he works for Arizona Football in the Player Personnel and Recruiting department and formerly served as the Defensive Coordinator for Heritage High School.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Athletics</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Seiya Suzuki is heating up — even if Chicago isn’t just yet. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/cubs-news-carson-kelly-feat-triple-athletics">Following the Cubs’ 10-2 win over the (Oakland) Athletics</a> in West Sacramento on Wednesday, Suzuki asked, via interpreter Edwin Stanberry, “Is Chicago warm yet?” The answer might be no, but Suzuki’s <a href="https://x.com/BNightengale/status/1907536743664136601" rel="noopener">bat is scorching hot</a>, regardless.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/cubs-offensive-explosion-makes-unwanted-athletics-history">Cubs’ outfielder launched two home runs in the series finale</a>, including a three-run shot in the second inning and an opposite-field solo blast in the fourth, powering the Cubs to a series sweep and giving him four homers in the past four games.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Seiya Suzuki hits homeruns both ways in one game 🙌<a href="https://t.co/ikKt3ChtWH">pic.twitter.com/ikKt3ChtWH</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1907536518383808808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 2, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>As Bob Nightengale noted on X, “The Chicago Cubs hit 6 home runs in the first six games of the season. They have 8 home runs in 22 innings in Sacramento, two HRs today by Seiya Suzuki.”</p><p>Suzuki’s second-inning blast left the bat at 112.9 mph and traveled 401 feet over the left-center field wall, coming on the first pitch from A’s lefty Jeffrey Springs. It was exactly the kind of aggressive approach the Cubs have been waiting to see from the slugger.</p><h2><b>Cubs dominate A’s in win on Wednesday</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Seiya-Suzuki-1.jpg"><figcaption>Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>“I love it when he’s aggressive,” Cubs starter Jameson Taillon said. “He’s got some crazy pop. I love it when he gets a swing off because he can do what he’s doing. He’s an impact bat for us.”</p><p>After starting the season 1-for-14, Suzuki has recorded multiple hits in each of his last four games, boosting his average to .275 with a .958 OPS. He also added a walk and an RBI single in Wednesday’s rout, a sign that he’s settling into a rhythm just as the Cubs return home.</p><p>“He’s a big part of our offense, so getting him off to a good start and getting him confident just bodes well for the rest of the season, for sure,” manager Craig Counsell said.</p><p>Part of Suzuki’s turnaround may be attributed to his mindset shift. After Tuesday’s game, he admitted that when he’s struggling, he tends to be too selective at the plate. “I think one of my characteristics is when I’m not going well, I’m too selective, so just keeping that approach of staying aggressive,” Suzuki said.</p><p>Another factor? Watching teammate Kyle Tucker — who had a four-game home run streak entering Wednesday — go about his at-bats has helped Suzuki gain clarity in his own.</p><p>“Him and Tucker going at the same time lets everyone else relax at their spots in the lineup,” Taillon said. “They can carry a lineup by themselves.”</p><p>The Cubs’ offense exploded for 35 runs over three games in Sacramento, tying the ninth-most runs scored in a three-game set in franchise history. And they weren’t just beating up on bullpen arms, either — they tagged A’s starters Luis Severino and Jeffrey Springs for a combined 11 runs over nine innings.</p><p>With Suzuki locked in, the Cubs return to Wrigley Field for Friday’s home opener against the Padres, carrying momentum — and power — into the Friendly Confines.</p><p>“It’s going to be the coolest [Opening Day],” Taillon said. “I’m really excited to get back to Wrigley.”</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cubs’ Seiya Suzuki hits major accomplishment vs. Athletics

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-fans-kyle-tucker-demand-tom-ricketts');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cubs fans make Kyle Tucker demand to Tom Ricketts');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Fans-make-Kyle-Tucker-demand-to-Tom-Ricketts.jpg"></figure><h1>Cubs fans make Kyle Tucker demand to Tom Ricketts</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-04-02T09:41:23-07:00">April 2nd, 9:41am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-04-02T09:43:19-07:00">April 2nd, 9:43am</time><address><a>Jason Patt</a>Jason Patt started as an editor at ClutchPoints in 2018 and became the head of the editorial team in 2022. He also co-hosts Cash Considerations: A Chicago Bulls Podcast for the Blue Wire Network.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Cubs</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>While new Chicago Cubs star Kyle Tucker struggled in spring training, his contract year is officially off to a rip-roaring start now that real games are happening. Tucker homered for the fourth straight game on Tuesday night in Sacramento, part of a 7-4 Cubs victory over the Athletics. The 28-year-old slugger is hitting .353 with four home runs, 11 RBI and an OPS over 1.3 in eight games so far.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/cubs-rumors-kyle-tucker-pressure-big-trades">With Tucker set to hit free agency</a>, there’s concern in Chicago that he’s going to be just a rental after the Cubs gave up All-Star Isaac Paredes and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/astros-news-star-prospect-kyle-tucker-trade-opening-day-roster">star prospect Cam Smith</a> to get him from the Houston Astros. With Tucker tearing the cover off the ball to start the season, fans want to see Cubs owner Tom Ricketts pay up to keep the star around for the long haul.</p><p>Namely, longtime Chicago sports radio host David Kaplan is <a href="https://x.com/thekapman/status/1907293884859732306" rel="noopener">making demands to Ricketts</a>: “Attn. Tom Ricketts. The time to begin contract negations with Kyle Tucker is now. The price is only going to go up.”</p><p>Kaplan’s replies were largely in agreement, and pretty much any Cubs fan will tell you they need to do whatever they can to keep the star outfielder. Losing Tucker after trading an All-Star third baseman in Paredes and a prospect with so much upside like Smith would be a tough pill to swallow.</p><p>But is Ricketts willing to play ball at the highest levels of free agency? Tucker will be one of the hottest players on the market in the winter, and some are even <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/philadelphia-phillies/phillies-rumors-604-million-kyle-tucker-prediction-will-make-cubs-sad">predicting a $600 million contract</a>. The Cubs, despite being in a huge market like Chicago and raking in the dough as a franchise, have been a bit more frugal in recent years, leading to the concerns about them not being willing to do what it takes to keep Tucker.</p><p>There’s always some risk in offering gigantic long-term contracts in baseball, but the Cubs should be looking to compete for World Series right now and in the immediate future. That means paying Kyle Tucker a boatload of money in his prime. If he winds up choosing elsewhere, so be it, but it shouldn’t be due to a lowball Chicago offer.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cubs fans make Kyle Tucker demand to Tom Ricketts

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-carson-kelly-feat-triple-athletics');   ga('set', 'title', 'Carson Kelly achieves major feat with triple vs. Athletics');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Cubs-news-Carson-Kelly-achieves-major-feat-with-triple-vs.-Athletics.jpg"></figure><h1>Carson Kelly achieves major feat with triple vs. Athletics</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-04-01T04:08:29-07:00">April 1st, 4:08am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-04-01T07:27:51-07:00">April 1st, 7:27am</time><address><a>Nathan Yasis</a>Nathan Yasis is an Associate Editor for ClutchPoints, specializing in the NBA.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Athletics</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Carson Kelly had come close to hitting for the cycle before, but the elusive triple always slipped through his grasp. With just two triples in his decade-long big league career, Kelly finally made history on Monday night. He became the first Chicago Cubs player in 32 years to hit for the cycle, completing the feat with a triple in the eighth inning during <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/betting/cubs-athletics-prediction-odds-pick-4-1-2025">an 18-3 demolition of the Athletics</a>. This marked the end of the longest cycle drought in the National League.</p><p>Late in the Cubs’ victory over the Athletics on Monday at Sutter Health Park in Sacramento, the outcome was all but decided. Yet, Chicago’s catcher still had one final task to accomplish.</p><p>When Kelly’s line drive to right-center field <a href="https://www.twitter.com/JomboyMedia/status/1906935300653269285" rel="noopener">hit the fence and bounced past</a> A’s center fielder JJ Bleday, he rounded first base and quickly realized he had an opportunity to achieve something remarkable. He wasn’t about to let it slip away.</p><p>Kelly hustled around second base and, despite his 12th-percentile sprint speed, powered into third base standing up. Out of breath and smiling, he pumped his arms in celebration, directing the excitement toward a fired-up Chicago dugout.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Carson Kelly legs out a triple in the eighth to complete the cycle! <a href="https://t.co/VGFZV5LoHT">pic.twitter.com/VGFZV5LoHT</a></p><p>— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) <a href="https://twitter.com/JomboyMedia/status/1906935300653269285?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 1, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Cubs catcher Carson Kelly also drew two walks in the first major league game at Sutter Health Park, the new home for the A’s this season, after they moved their operations to the minor league ballpark.</p><h2><b>Carson Kelly hitting all kinds of history against the Athletics</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Carson-Kelly-hitting-for-the-Cubs.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The 30-year-old homered in the fourth inning, delivered a two-run single in the fifth, doubled and walked in the sixth, and tripled in the eighth. Mark Grace was the last Cubs player to hit for the cycle, doing so on May 9, 1993, against San Diego — a year before Kelly was even born. Since Grace’s achievement, the team had come close 342 times, with a player falling just one hit short on each occasion.</p><p>No Cubs catcher had reached the milestone since Randy Hundley on August 11, 1966, against Houston. Kelly also became just the third major leaguer to hit for the cycle and walk twice in the same game. Joe Gordon achieved it for the Yankees in 1940, while Mickey Cochrane did so for the Philadelphia A’s in 1937.</p><p>The Kansas City Royals have the longest drought without a cycle in the majors, with George Brett being the last to achieve the feat for Kansas City on July 25, 1990, against Toronto. Kelly’s run-scoring triple put the Cubs ahead 17-3, and he couldn’t have been more excited to notch his third career triple.</p><p>The Cubs batted around in both the fifth and sixth innings, driving in 11 combined runs. Along with 21 hits, they drew 10 walks, consistently putting runners on base throughout the night.</p><p>Kelly took two of those walks, becoming only the third player in AL/NL history to both walk twice and hit for the cycle in the same game. The last player to achieve this? Joe Gordon of the Yankees in 1940.</p><p>Kelly made even more history: he became the first No. 9 hitter to hit for the cycle since Chone Figgins in 2006 and the first Cubs catcher to do so since Randy Hundley in 1966.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Carson Kelly achieves major feat with triple vs. Athletics

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-matt-boyd-starter-bullpen-blowing-debut-start');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cubs’ new $29 million starter sounds off on bullpen blowing debut start');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/CUBS-NEWS-NEW-29-MILLION-STARTER-SOUNDS-OFF-ON-BULLPEN-BLOWING-DEBUT-START.jpg"></figure><h1>Cubs’ new $29 million starter sounds off on bullpen blowing debut start</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-31T11:48:07-07:00">March 31st, 11:48am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-31T11:48:07-07:00">March 31st, 11:48am</time><address><a>Russell Steinberg</a>Russell Steinberg covers Major League Baseball and the New York Liberty for ClutchPoints. A baseball and basketball lifer, he has written for Boardroom, SLAM, SB Nation, The Next, and more. He graduated from NYU in 2012 and still returns to serve as PA announcer and occasional broadcaster for the school’s basketball and volleyball teams.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Cubs</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Chicago Cubs are only six games into their 2025 season, but early on, the bullpen has been a problem.</p><p>Cubs relievers have a combined 8.34 ERA — the third-worst in the majors — and collapsed on Sunday in a 10-6 loss that spoiled an otherwise sparkling debut for <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-sign-matt-boyd-to-29-million-contract">new Cubs starting pitcher Matt Boyd</a>.</p><p>Boyd fired 5.0 scoreless innings, giving up four hits and striking out five. Chicago led 1-0 when he exited the game, only to see the bullpen give up 10 runs over the final three innings, including eight in a disastrous eighth inning.</p><p>For his part, Boyd <a href="https://x.com/WatchMarquee/status/1906494006927749589" rel="noopener">doesn’t seem worried</a>.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">“We got a great group of guys down there, we have so much talent … there’s not one ounce of worry when it comes to those guys.”</p><p>Matt Boyd is confident in the Cubs bullpen. <a href="https://t.co/nj7zQrT9lh">pic.twitter.com/nj7zQrT9lh</a></p><p>— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) <a href="https://twitter.com/WatchMarquee/status/1906494006927749589?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 30, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“We got a great group of guys down there, we have so much talent,” he told the media after the game. “There’s not one ounce of worry when it comes to those guys. All in all, we got a great pitching staff. We know what we can do.”</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-acquire-reliever-in-trade-with-guardians">New reliever Eli Morgan</a> had the roughest outing of the bunch on Sunday, giving up six runs on six hits in 0.2 innings to take the loss. After giving up plenty of loud contact, he said he plans to <a href="https://www.mlb.com/cubs/news/cubs-bullpen-surrenders-8-run-8th-inning" rel="noopener">take another look</a> at his outing to figure out what went wrong.</p><p>“I feel like the pitches felt good out of my hand,” Morgan said, per Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. “It’s more command — seeing where they end up — versus stuff.”</p><h2><b>Manager Craig Counsell is unconcerned by Cubs’ bullpen woes</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/CRAIG-COUNSELL-CUBS.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-craig-counsell-announces-pitching-decision">Cubs manager Craig Counsell</a> is similarly unconcerned about his bullpen’s poor start. A baseball lifer who played 16 years in the Majors himself, Counsell knows that <a href="https://x.com/WatchMarquee/status/1906491474205671594" rel="noopener">it’s too early to start panicking</a> about anything.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">“In the 8th inning, we just didn’t pitch well. They got pitches to hit and they did something with them.”</p><p>Craig Counsell on today’s pitching performance. <a href="https://t.co/rXk8HPDC3y">pic.twitter.com/rXk8HPDC3y</a></p><p>— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) <a href="https://twitter.com/WatchMarquee/status/1906491474205671594?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 30, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“We pitched well for five innings and then we struggled for three innings, essentially,” he said after the game. “We got a couple big outs, Caleb [Thielbar] got a couple big outs in the seventh and in the 8th inning, we just didn’t pitch well. They got pitches to hit and they did something with them.”</p><p>In addition to Morgan’s struggles, Nate Pearson had a forgettable outing, giving up two runs on three hits and two walks in 1.1 innings. Thielbar followed him and he walked three and gave up two runs despite not allowing a hit in 0.2 innings.</p><p>The Cubs made it a point to upgrade their bullpen depth over the offseason and Counsell seems committed to letting his relievers figure themselves out.</p><p>“This is our group,” he said.</p><p>Counsell is in his second season as Cubs manager after spending eight years leading the Milwaukee Brewers. Between his time in Milwaukee and Chicago, he is seeking his ninth straight season of either a playoff appearance or winning record.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cubs’ new $29 million starter sounds off on bullpen blowing debut start

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-rumors-kyle-tucker-pressure-big-trades');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cubs rumors: Kyle Tucker ‘pressure’ in play after big trades');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Cubs-rumors-Chicago-facing-Kyle-Tucker-pressure-after-big-trades.jpg"></figure><h1>Cubs rumors: Kyle Tucker ‘pressure’ in play after big trades</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-30T13:19:13-07:00">March 30th, 1:19pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-31T07:46:59-07:00">March 31st, 7:46am</time><address><a>Jason Patt</a>Jason Patt started as an editor at ClutchPoints in 2018 and became the head of the editorial team in 2022. He also co-hosts Cash Considerations: A Chicago Bulls Podcast for the Blue Wire Network.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Cubs</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Chicago Cubs made a big splash by acquiring Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros this past offseason. In the trade, the Cubs sent the Astros All-Star Isaac Paredes and star prospect Cam Smith, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/astros-news-star-prospect-kyle-tucker-trade-opening-day-roster">who proceeded to make the Opening Day roster</a> after an impressive spring. With Tucker set to hit free agency next offseason, Chicago is facing a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-rumors-why-jed-hoyer-chicago-are-facing-immense-pressure-in-2025">crucial 2025 campaign</a> and a huge decision on what to do with him. USA TODAY Sports’ Bob Nightengale addressed the Cubs’ predicament on Sunday, <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2025/03/30/bruce-bochy-brian-snitker-mlb-managers/82723066007/" rel="noopener">speaking to an executive</a> about the situation.</p><p>“So, would you have rather have six years of Smith, Paredes and Bellinger,” one executive said, “or one year of Tucker? There’s a lot of pressure for them to keep Tucker now.”</p><p>In addition to the Tucker trade, Chicago essentially salary dumped Cody Bellinger to the New York Yankees. The Cubs just traded Cody Poteet, the one player they received for Bellinger, after designating him for assignment. That only adds to the stakes of the 2025 season, which is also the last of president Jed Hoyer’s contract.</p><p>While many predicted Chicago to win the NL Central, a cohort of fans don’t think they did enough to improve the roster in the offseason, even with the Tucker trade. If things don’t go well, Hoyer could find himself out of a job.</p><h2><b>Kyle Tucker’s free agency</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Kyle-Tucker-on-March-19-2025.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Then there’s the matter of Tucker’s free agency. The Cubs star is going to be one of the hottest targets on the market in the winter, and if he’s going to stay put, owner Tom Ricketts better be prepared to pay up. The Athletic’s Jim Bowden recently predicted that the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/philadelphia-phillies/phillies-rumors-604-million-kyle-tucker-prediction-will-make-cubs-sad">Philadelphia Phillies would swoop in</a> with a contract offer north of $600 million.</p><p>Would Ricketts have the stomach to offer that much? <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-ken-rosenthal-takes-cubs-tom-ricketts-over-financial-complaints">The Cubs owner has faced criticism</a> over his frugality despite massive revenue streams and a loyal fan base.</p><p>Tucker had a rough spring and was relatively quiet through the first four games of the regular season, but he broke out in a big way on Saturday night with three hits, including a home run, and two RBI. The 28-year-old should have a big season and be ready to cash in.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cubs rumors: Kyle Tucker ‘pressure’ in play after big trades

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-chicago-trade-proposal-vladimir-guerrero-jr-contract');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cubs trade proposal for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. as contract talk intensifies');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Cubs-trade-proposal-for-Vladimir-Guerrero-Jr.jpg"></figure><h1>Cubs trade proposal for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. as contract talk intensifies</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-27T16:08:07-07:00">March 27th, 4:08pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-27T16:08:07-07:00">March 27th, 4:08pm</time><address><a>Bailey Bassett</a>Bailey Bassett is a sports writer from Denver, Colorado, covering major sports events and athlete backgrounds at ClutchPoints. He has experience covering and writing on high school, collegiate, and professional sports.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Cubs</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Toronto Blue Jays are entering MLB Opening Day without their best player locked up for the long-term. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., one of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/mlb-stories/ranking-50-best-mlb-players-2025-season">best players in baseball</a>, is a free agent after this season. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/toronto-blue-jays/blue-jays-rumors-new-vladimir-guerrero-jr-contract-offer-on-table-opening-day">Guerrero and the Blue Jays have been in talks about a contract</a> extension, but nothing has come to fruition. If the team gets concerned about the potential of losing the first baseman for nothing, then they might consider a trade. The Chicago Cubs seem like an ideal trading partner if it comes down to that.</p><h2><b>Cubs trade proposal for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. </b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Vladimir-Guerrero-Jr_8135fa.jpg"><figcaption>Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p><b>Cubs receive: </b>Vladimir Guerrero Jr.</p><p><b>Blue Jays receive:</b> Matt Shaw (Cubs No. 1 prospect, MLB No. 19), Owen Caissie (Cubs No. 3, MLB No. 53), Jefferson Rojas (Cubs No. 7, MLB No. 96), Jack Neely (Cubs. No. 16)</p><p>As of now, Guerrero might not be on the trading block. Both he and the Blue Jays seem motivated to get a new contract done. The Canada native wants to be in Toronto long-term, and the Blue Jays want him to be their star player. The Blue Jays just put a new offer on the table, but the two sides still <a href="https://x.com/Buster_ESPN/status/1905262809820111341" rel="noopener">aren’t close on an agreement</a>, according to Buster Olney of ESPN.</p><p>Now that the regular season has started, Guerrero might focus on his on-field play, meaning it might be hard to work out the details of a contract. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/toronto-blue-jays/blue-jays-rumors-blue-jays-vladimir-guerrero-jr-not-afraid-hitting-free-agency">Blue Jays are at risk of him walking in free agency</a> at season’s end, so they might look to trade him for a huge haul.</p><p>The Cubs would be a great fit for Guerrero, and they certainly have the ammunition to get a deal done. Chicago has one of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/mlb-stories/top-10-mlb-farm-systems-ahead-of-2025-season">best farm systems in baseball</a>, highlighted by their league-leading seven top-100 prospects. It will take a handful of those young players to get a deal for Guerrero done. This trade proposal even includes Matt Shaw, the team’s top-ranked prospect.</p><p>Additionally, the inclusion of Owen Caissie, Jefferson Rojas, and Jack Neely would make sense in this hypothetical blockbuster. The three top-100 prospects in this deal would help replenish the talent lost in a Guerrero trade for Toronto, as they are all position players. Meanwhile, the Cubs would love to add Guerrero, and he could be the player that gets them over the hump.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/mlb-stories/grading-cubs-astros-kyle-tucker-trade">Cubs already traded for Kyle Tucker</a>, so they are clearly looking for hitting help. Guerrero batted to a .323 average and had 30 home runs in what was his fourth straight All-Star season last year. He’d slot right into the heart of the Chicago lineup if they were able to get a deal done. With how deep the team’s farm system is, they might even be able to get away with only trading prospects while keeping the major league roster intact.</p><h2><b>Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s contract status with the Blue Jays</b></h2><p>With the regular season underway, it is becoming more and more likely that the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/seattle-mariners/mariners-trade-proposal-for-vladimir-guerrero-jr-sets-blue-jays-star-free">Blue Jays will be forced to trade Guerrero.</a> The first baseman had originally put a Feb. 18 deadline on extension talks, although it appears that the two sides have continued to try and work out a deal since then.</p><p>“I think we’re going to sign him. I think we’re going to extend him,” Blue Jays president and CEO Mark Shapiro <a href="https://www.mlb.com/bluejays/news/mark-shapiro-optimistic-about-vladimir-guerrero-jr-extension" rel="noopener">said on March 20</a>, via Keegan Matheson of MLB.com. “We have such a clear alignment on the desired outcome. Vlad wants to play his whole career as a Toronto Blue Jay. We want him to end his career in a Blue Jays uniform and be a true legacy player for the Toronto Blue Jays. That’s a pretty good place to start.”</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/new-york-mets/grading-juan-soto-mets-historic-765-million-contract">Juan Soto recently signed one of the biggest contracts</a> in MLB history, and it appears that Guerrero wants his new deal to be in Soto’s ballpark. The Blue Jays recently offered Guerrero less than $600 million over 14 years, though. It isn’t quite clear how far off the two sides are on a new deal, but with each passing day, the league gets closer to Guerrero’s impending free agency. If the Blue Jays are forced to trade their star, then there isn’t a better fit for Guerrero than with the Cubs.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cubs trade proposal for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. as contract talk intensifies

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/mlb-rumors-cubs-predicted-pull-off-blockbuster-marlins-trade-help-win-division');   ga('set', 'title', 'MLB rumors: Cubs predicted to pull off blockbuster Marlins trade to help win division');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Cubs-predicted-to-pull-off-blockbuster-Marlins-trade-to-help-win-division.jpg"></figure><h1>MLB rumors: Cubs predicted to pull off blockbuster Marlins trade to help win division</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-27T10:59:15-07:00">March 27th, 10:59am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-27T10:59:15-07:00">March 27th, 10:59am</time><address><a>Ryan Bologna</a>Ryan Bologna is an author at ClutchPoints. He studied journalism and communication at UConn.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Cubs</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Chicago Cubs were one of the more active teams this offseason, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-chicago-land-kyle-tucker-massive-astros-trade">with the trade for Kyle Tucker</a> from the Houston Astros headlining the moves, and The Athletic’s Cubs beat reporter is predicting that the team makes <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6231805/2025/03/27/mlb-opening-day-bold-predictions-2025/?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_campaign=mlbtw&amp;source=mlbtw" rel="noopener">another splash ahead of the trade deadline</a> with Sandy Alcantara to help them win the National League Central division.</p><p>“The Cubs will finish slightly north of 83 wins, capturing the division title after trading for Sandy Alcantara in a blockbuster deadline deal with the Miami Marlins,” Patrick Mooney of The Athletic predicts.</p><p>The Cubs come in as the likely favorite to win the division on paper, and when looking at the roster, it does make sense. However, the Milwaukee Brewers cannot be discounted, despite the departures of Willy Adames and Devin Williams in the offseason.</p><p>Alcantara would be an interesting addition. The Cubs’ rotation has two very good pitchers in Justin Steele and Shota Imanaga at the top, with Jameson Taillon, Matthew Boyd and Ben Brown taking up the other three spots. Alcantara is rebuilding trade value after Tommy John surgery last season. He will start the season with the Miami Marlins, but seems like a likely trade candidate come the deadline at the end of July.</p><p>Adding Alcantara to a potential playoff rotation that includes Steele and Imanaga would make the Cubs very capable of contending with any team, even in the stacked National League. This is an all-in year for Jed Hoyer and the Cubs, as they traded for Tucker, who is a true rental and set to become a free agent after this season. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/mlb-rumors-cubs-jesus-luzardo-trade-talks-with-marlins-are-dead">The Cubs nearly acquired Jesus Luzardo</a> from the Marlins in the offseason, so there is an established line of communication, and Hoyer has shown that he is interested in adding another starting pitcher.</p><p>It will be interesting to see if the Cubs live up to expectations this season. The talent is certainly there on the roster, and hopefully they are in a spot to buy come the deadline, where Alcantara could be one of the top names available.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

MLB rumors: Cubs predicted to pull off blockbuster Marlins trade to help win division

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-rumors-why-jed-hoyer-chicago-are-facing-immense-pressure-in-2025');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cubs rumors: Why Jed Hoyer, Chicago are facing immense ‘pressure’ in 2025');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Why-Jed-Hoyer-Chicago-are-facing-immense-pressure-in-2025.jpg"></figure><h1>Cubs rumors: Why Jed Hoyer, Chicago are facing immense ‘pressure’ in 2025</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-27T10:07:38-07:00">March 27th, 10:07am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-27T10:07:38-07:00">March 27th, 10:07am</time><address><a>Zachary Weinberger</a>Zachary Weinberger joined ClutchPoints in October 2023 as a Miami Heat reporter as well as an Associate Editor. He graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2022 after covering the school's athletic programs since his freshman year at the FAU University Press, where he was a Sports Editor and Editor-in-Chief. He then covered FAU Sports for The Palm Beach Post.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Cubs</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>As the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-jeff-passan-chicago-brewers-warning-nl-central-race">Chicago Cubs looks to capture the NL Central</a> and make a big jump this season, there is no doubt pressure on the ball club this season to make enormous strides. While the season didn’t start well with the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-overreactions-ugly-tokyo-series-dodgers">Cubs having an ugly series against the Los Angeles Dodgers</a> in Tokyo, Japan, there are other trends surrounding this season that could lead to massive change if it ends disappointingly.</p><p>The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal wrote a column about the different storylines surrounding the upcoming MLB 2025 campaign with one speaking about the teams with the most pressure, mentioning Chicago as one of them. He would express how team president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer is in the final year of his current contract <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6232629/2025/03/27/mlb-season-storylines-opening-day-2025/" rel="noopener">where the team hasn’t made the postseason</a> in that time.</p><p>“Hoo boy, here we go. Let’s start with the Cubbies, whose president of baseball operations, Jed Hoyer, is entering the final year of a five-year deal,” Rosenthal wrote. “The Cubs have yet to make the playoffs with Hoyer as their top baseball executive. And much as owner Tom Ricketts might deserve it, he’s not going to blame himself if things again go awry.”</p><h2><b>The Kyle Tucker trade for the Cubs could look less than ideal</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Kyle-Tucker-on-March-19-2025.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>A big move made by the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-chicago-land-kyle-tucker-massive-astros-trade">Cubs was trading for star Kyle Tucker</a> from the Houston Astros, but Rosenthal also looked at the deal and detailed how it could look a bit negatively this season. When speaking about the rookies that could step up this season in the NL, he would mention Chicago third baseman Matt Shaw, there could be frustration if Astros rookie Cam Smith proves to be better as that’s the one traded for Tucker.</p><p>“And Shaw, in particular, will be one to watch,” Rosenthal wrote. “The Cubs could have afforded Shaw more development time by signing free-agent third baseman Alex Bregman. And while Cam Smith is moving from third base to right field with the Houston Astros, the frustration of Cubs fans will only grow if one of the players their team traded for Kyle Tucker proves a better prospect than the one they kept.”</p><p>“Smith, the Cubs’ first-round pick out of Florida State last year, will be a leading candidate for the AL Rookie award if he even faintly resembles the player he was in spring training,” Rosenthal continued. “Detroit Tigers righty Jackson Jobe and Red Sox second baseman Kristian Campbell are perhaps better bets.”</p><p>At any rate, the Cubs look to have a big season in 2025 as they finished 83-79 which put them third in the NL Central.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cubs rumors: Why Jed Hoyer, Chicago are facing immense ‘pressure’ in 2025

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-jeff-passan-chicago-brewers-warning-nl-central-race');   ga('set', 'title', 'Jeff Passan hits Cubs with Brewers warning in NL Central race');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Cubs-news-Jeff-Passan-hits-Chicago-with-Brewers-warning-in-NL-Central-race.jpg"></figure><h1>Jeff Passan hits Cubs with Brewers warning in NL Central race</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-26T13:59:34-07:00">March 26th, 1:59pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-26T13:59:34-07:00">March 26th, 1:59pm</time><address><a>Christopher Hennessy</a>Christopher Hennessy graduated with a journalism degree from Fordham University in 2022. He has also worked at Spectrum News One in Albany, New York and with The Hockey Writers as a New York Islanders writer. Chris is originally from Connecticut and is a lifelong New York Yankees, Islanders, and Jets fan.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Cubs</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Chicago Cubs made one of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/mlb-news-cubs-astros-both-earn-praise-for-kyle-tucker-trade">biggest trades of the offseason, bringing in Kyle Tucker</a>. That has fans’ expectations high in the Windy City as they look to make the playoffs for the first time since 2020. But in his preseason predictions, ESPN insider Jeff Passan does not have the Cubs winning the NL Central. He <a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/44389786/mlb-2025-predictions-playoffs-world-series-mvp-rookie-year-cy-young" rel="noopener">explains why the</a> Milwaukee Brewers will win the division this season.</p><p>“Because the difference between the two talentwise is pretty negligible, and I like teams that have won recently. It’s true the Brewers did not spend any money this winter and were raided in free agency,” Passan wrote.</p><p>“It’s also true that Jackson Chourio is on the verge of becoming one of the best players in baseball, and the Brewers’ farm system consistently produces quality big leaguers — enough to send them to the postseason five times in the past six full seasons. The Cubs are better on paper, sure, but they haven’t played as much postseason baseball recently. That said, would it surprise me if the Cubs won the division? Not at all, because it’s the NL Central, and just about anything can happen.”</p><p>The Brewers have not had success in those playoff games but have had incredible regular-season success in recent years. Is it enough for them to win the NL Central again?</p><h2><b>Will the Cubs or Brewers win the NL Central?</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Jackson-Chourio-with-Milwaukee-Brewers-3.jpg"><figcaption>Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The Cubs <a href="https://sportsbook.fanduel.com/navigation/mlb?tab=divisions" rel="noopener">are the favorites</a> to win the NL Central on FanDuel, +115 to the Brewers’ +230. Their additions of Tucker and Ryan Pressly in separate trades with the Astros are the biggest reasons for that hype. Plus, the Brewers lost shortstop Willy Adames and closer Devin Williams from their 93-win team from last year.</p><p>The Reds and Pirates are trying to power out of lengthy rebuilds and could challenge for National League playoff spots. They are not easy wins like they have been in the past. Whether the Cubs or Brewers can get to Paul Skenes or silence Elly De La Cruz may determine the division this year.</p><p>The Cubs did not have great starting pitching last year and did not do much to improve it this offseason. They<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/cody-bellinger-trade-grades-yankees-cubs"> picked up career minor-league Cody Poteet in the Cody Bellinger trade</a>. And they signed former Brewers pitcher Collin Rea. If those guys succeed in Chicago with Milwaukee’s pitching factory across the division, they can finally return to the playoffs.</p><p>The Cubs start their American season in Arizona against the Diamondbacks. And the Brewers start in Yankee Stadium on Thursday.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Jeff Passan hits Cubs with Brewers warning in NL Central race

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-kyle-tucker-predicted-sammy-sosa-franchise-history');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cubs’ Kyle Tucker predicted to join Sammy Sosa in franchise history');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Kyle-Tucker-predicted-to-join-Sammy-Sosa-in-franchise-history.jpg"></figure><h1>Cubs’ Kyle Tucker predicted to join Sammy Sosa in franchise history</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-25T14:47:20-07:00">March 25th, 2:47pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-25T14:47:20-07:00">March 25th, 2:47pm</time><address><a>Christopher Hennessy</a>Christopher Hennessy graduated with a journalism degree from Fordham University in 2022. He has also worked at Spectrum News One in Albany, New York and with The Hockey Writers as a New York Islanders writer. Chris is originally from Connecticut and is a lifelong New York Yankees, Islanders, and Jets fan.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Cubs</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Chicago Cubs made one of the biggest trades of the offseason. They <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/grading-cubs-astros-kyle-tucker-trade">sent a haul to the Houston Astros for outfielder Kyle Tucker</a>, whose contract is expiring after this season. After the big trade and a monster season cut short by a freak injury last year, Tucker has high expectations. ESPN’s David Schoenfield predicts that Tucker will join Sammy Sosa in Cubs <a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/44328603/mlb-2025-season-preview-opening-day-power-rankings-playoff-odds-all-30-teams" rel="noopener">franchise history when 2025 is said and done</a>.</p><p>“The Cubs have had just one 30/30 player in franchise history — Sammy Sosa, who did it twice. Kyle Tucker not only gets there, but goes 40/30 (40 home runs and 30 stolen bases) and captures the non-Shohei Ohtani MVP Award, finishing second in MVP voting to the Dodgers’ two-way star,” Schoenfield wrote.</p><p>Tucker has never had a 30-30 season but came painfully close two times. He hit 29 home runs and stole 30 bases in 2023, finishing fifth in MVP voting and winning the Silver Slugger. The year before, he hit 30 homers and swiped 25 bags. The Cubs have not had this type of talent in a generation.</p><p>That is why the Cubs gave up three solid pieces to bring Tucker in. If he has this type of season, they have to make a big effort to keep him next offseason.</p><h2><b>The Cubs must pay off big offseason</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Kyle-Tucker-with-Chicago-Cubs.jpg"><figcaption>Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Tucker was not the only addition to the Cubs’ roster this year. Later in the winter, they hooked up with the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/astros-news-ryan-pressly-wife-kat-heartfelt-message-houston-trade-cubs">Astros for another trade, bringing in closer Ryan Pressly</a>. They <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/the-scott-boras-wrinkle-to-yankees-cody-bellinger-trade">dumped Cody Bellinger for pitcher Cody Poteet</a>, signed infielders Justin Turner and Jon Berti, and brought in starter Colin Rea.</p><p>Last offseason, the Cubs made Craig Counsell the highest-paid manager in baseball. They still finished ten games behind his former team, the Milwaukee Brewers, in the NL Central. This year, they focused on the on-field product and could reap the benefits.</p><p>The National League got stronger this offseason and the Central is going through a youth movement. The Reds and Pirates both have solid young rosters and are looking to power out of long rebuilds. Milwaukee is bringing back a similar team, but the Cardinals are rebuilding.</p><p>Tucker immediately becomes the best hitter in the Cubs’ lineup. If he joins Sammy Sosa in the franchise record books, the front office has to make a serious effort to bring him back. They did everything in their power to keep the 2016 core together, so they know what it will take to keep Tucker.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cubs’ Kyle Tucker predicted to join Sammy Sosa in franchise history

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-craig-counsell-announces-pitching-decision');   ga('set', 'title', 'Cubs’ Craig Counsell announces pivotal pitching decision');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Craig-Counsell-announces-pivotal-pitching-decision.jpg"></figure><h1>Cubs’ Craig Counsell announces pivotal pitching decision</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-03-25T13:54:11-07:00">March 25th, 1:54pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-03-25T13:54:11-07:00">March 25th, 1:54pm</time><address><a>Zachary Draves</a>Zachary Draves is a sportswriter and broadcaster based in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa. Zachary covers a variety of different sports as well as sports history, sport and society, and sport and culture. He is also a professor of sociology.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Cubs</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/chicago-cubs/cubs-news-chicago-agrees-contract-ex-royals-pitcher">signing with the Chicago Cubs as a non-roster invitee</a>, manager Craig Counsell has announced that right-handed pitcher Brad Keller <a href="https://x.com/maddie_m_lee/status/1904601750558097910" rel="noopener">will be on the roster for opening day</a>.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/mlb/mlb-stories/mlb-news-how-dodgers-cubs-tokyo-series-made-jaw-dropping-mlb-history">Cubs are coming off playing in the Tokyo Series</a> against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Keller wasn’t on the official roster but was able to <a href="https://www.cubsinsider.com/2025/03/25/ben-brown-named-5th-starter-brad-keller-makes-roster/" rel="noopener">travel with the team.</a></p><p>Keller was notified by Counsell of his being added to the roster on Tuesday, per Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times. The Cubs will open the season on the road against the Arizona Diamondbacks on March 27 and will have their home opener on April 4 against the San Diego Padres.</p><p>Keller has played for the Kansas City Royals, Chicago White Sox, and the Boston Red Sox since coming into the league in 2018. He has a 38-57 record and has pitched in 166 games, with an ERA of 4.34 and 538 career strikeouts. His typical pitches are the fastball, slider, and cutter.</p><h2>Brad Keller’s velocity has improved</h2><p>Keller is coming off his first spring training with the Cubs. He finished with robust numbers, including an ERA of 3.86 in 11.2 innings pitched. Keller pitched in seven games, won a game, saved a game, and struck out 13 batters.</p><p>He has received praise from the Cubs for his increased velocity, as evident by striking out Brian McCann of the Atlanta Braves on a <a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/story?id=27252832&amp;src=desktop" rel="noopener">98 mph fastball</a>.</p><p>During his time with the Red Sox, Keller made it a point to <a href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs/2025/03/24/boston-was-a-blessing-to-my-career-cubs-brad-keller-firmly-in-mix-for-bullpen-role" rel="noopener">work on improving his velocity</a>. He focused on using his legs more to generate more strength in his delivery. As a result, Keller can throw the ball harder. His fastball speed has <a href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2025/2/25/24373180/chicago-cubs-bcb-after-dark-brad-keller-have-staying-power-starting-rotation-bullpen#:~:text=Keller%20has%20impressed%20the%20Cubs,first%20outing%20in%20Spring%20Training." rel="noopener">increased from 93.8 mph to 96.3</a> mph over a year.</p><p>This season, Keller will come in as a relief pitcher. However, he could have a chance to start in the back of the rotation in case of injury.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Cubs’ Craig Counsell announces pivotal pitching decision

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2025 SEASON STATS
BA	HR	RBI	OPS	SB
.308	0	3	0.752	0

2025 SEASON STATS
BA	HR	RBI	OPS	SB
.308	0	3	0.752	0