Cubs swing and miss at Correa, Bogaerts, Turner; can they connect with Swanson?
Trea Turner. Swing and a miss.
Xander Bogaerts. Swing and a miss.
Carlos Correa. See above.
In their pursuit of landing one of the premier free-agent shortstops this off-season, the Cubs have three strikes.
Fortunately, perhaps, they're not yet out.
Dansby Swanson is still on the market, so the Cubs have one more chance to make a connection.
Late Tuesday night, Correa reportedly agreed to a staggering 13-year, $350 million contract with the Giants.
Earlier, Turner joined the Phillies on an 11-year, $300 million deal and Bogaerts signed an 11-year, $280 million contract with the Padres.
Swanson is in line for similar long years and big money after hitting .277/.329/.447 with 25 home runs and 96 RBI for the Braves last season.
The 28-year-old shortstop is not as highly regarded as Turner, Bogaerts and Correa, but Swanson will make an impact on whatever team steps up to the plate.
Will it be the Cubs?
Possibly, but the Twins, Red Sox, Dodgers and Braves are also interested, so there is fierce competition for Swanson, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 draft.
The Cubs do have a capable shortstop in Nico Hoerner, but he'd make an easy move to second base if Swanson joins the roster.
Heading into the offseason following a second straight losing year, president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer indicated the Cubs have the financial resources to get back to being big-game hunters in free agency.
However ...
"The nature of baseball contracts is challenging because we've all seen contracts of certain lengths that can really bog a team down," Hoyer said. "You can get caught up in transactions that feel really good in the short term and don't make long-term sense. So those are the ones we'll avoid, but we do want to be aggressive to capture that momentum, to fill the holes on the team we know we have."
The Cubs are feeling good about finishing the season with a 39-31 record in the second half, but they still need plenty of help to get back to contender status.
They obviously don't want to get burned by another "long-term" contract like the eight-year, $184 million deal they gave outfielder Jason Heyward before the 2016 season.
Heyward never came close to playing up to the largest contract in franchise history and he was released in November. The Cubs will pay his $22 million salary for the 2023 season.
The Dodgers signed Heyward to a minor-league contract last week.
The Cubs have added free-agent starting pitcher Jameson Taillon on a four-year, $68 million contract and they officially signed center fielder Cody Bellinger on Wednesday.
According to FanSided's Robert Murray, the deal is worth $15.5 million next season with a mutual $25 million option for 2024, which includes a $5 million buyout.
Bellinger was the National League's MVP in 2019, but his production has nose-dived as he's dealt with a string of injuries - including major shoulder surgery.
After hitting a combined .193/256/.355 over the past two years, Bellinger was non-tendered by the Dodgers last month.