Jed Hoyer on Cubs off-season: ‘Everyone can use guy like Kyle Tucker’

After winning a playoff series for the first time since 2017, there weren't a ton of consequential questions when Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer held his end-of-season availability Wednesday.

There doesn't figure to be much roster turnover this winter. Hoyer said all of the coaches will be invited back, though some could leave for other opportunities.

So the focus fell to free-agent outfielder Kyle Tucker. The Cubs made a bold trade to land the four-time all-star last Dec. 13, now they'll try to keep him.

“Everyone can use a guy like Kyle Tucker,” Hoyer said in the interview room at Wrigley Field. “Everyone gets better by having a player like that. We'll certainly be having those conversations.”

Hoyer seemed to make it clear the Cubs intend to re-sign Tucker. They probably wouldn't have made the trade if they didn't. But it's out of their hands, obviously.

Tucker's performance in his initial season on the North Side was mostly positive but a mixed bag. At the all-star break, he ranked 12th in MLB in OPS. After the break he ranked 82nd and missed most of September with a calf injury.

“I do think when we were at our best, Kyle was at his best and vice versa,” Hoyer said. “When we take the totality of the season, he had a huge impact, as we hoped he would.”

During the playoffs Tucker had a respectable .745 OPS, but most of his production came in Games 3 and 4 against Milwaukee. He finished with 1 home run and 1 RBI in the postseason.

Maybe the disappointing ending will work in the Cubs' favor. There was once speculation the price tag for Tucker could soar beyond $500 million.

Now, it's tough to predict what will happen. Would he be willing to accept a shorter-term deal with opt-outs, similar to what the Cubs did with Cody Bellinger and the Red Sox gave Alex Bregman? That scenario would certainly fit the Cubs, who have been reluctant to hand out any extra long deals. They went seven years for Dansby Swanson, while the eight-year contracts they gave Jason Heyward and Alfonso Soriano didn't age well.

The great unknown with Tucker is whether any other team will try to swoop in with a massive deal. It's possible that won't happen, especially after the rough second half.

Hoyer talked about not allowing outside forces to influence the Cubs' goal of doing what's best for them.

“In general, I think you have to start everything we do with an evaluation of the player and focus on that,” Hoyer said. “Then what's that worth to the organization? I think that's the backbone.

“I think in my career, when you make decisions that are based on your evaluation and how you value a player, then it sort of takes some of the other stuff out of it, and you make better decisions. I think if you're reacting to how things are going around you, that's when you can make real mistakes.”

Asked about Tucker posting better numbers on the road this season than at Wrigley Field, Hoyer brushed it off, pointing out lefty hitters like Michael Busch and Pete Crow-Armstrong did well in home games.

If the Cubs do lose Tucker, a couple of their former players could be available as replacements — Bellinger and Kyle Schwarber. Or they could promote from within. Those possibilities are a few steps away still, but Hoyer has expressed regret many times over not picking up Schwarber's option with the Cubs in 2020.

Sho-down ahead:

One impactful decision to be made during the off-season involves Shota Imanaga's contract option, which is a little complicated.

According to spotrac.com, the Cubs have a contract option on the 2028 season. If they say yes, they essentially give Imanaga a three-year guaranteed deal worth $57 million, with a full no-trade clause.

If the Cubs decline that option, then it reverts to a player option and Imanaga can decide whether or not to accept $15 million to pitch for the Cubs next season.

Considering Imanaga's late-season struggles, the feeling here is the Cubs will almost certainly decline the 2028 option but would be very happy if he agrees to return next season for $15 million. He could also decline the player option and become a free agent. Asked about the Imanaga decision, Hoyer wouldn't get specific.

“Obviously, we have decisions to make, and we have discussions to make,” Hoyer said. “Over the next two or three weeks, we'll do that, but now I've got nothing but positive things to say about Shota.”

Quick hitters:

Hoyer said the Cubs would have added pitcher Cade Horton to the playoff roster had they beaten the Brewers. And he expects no significant postseason surgeries among the players.

Asked if there were any regrets about moves that weren't made at the trade deadline, Hoyer replied, “(No), just because I know what the market was, and I know what the prices were, and I also know that other teams weren't able to acquire that kind of pitching talent either.”

On the playoff atmosphere at Wrigley: “I don't think we'd had feelings like that in the building since like '15 and '16. And it makes you want to work that much harder this winter. You just want to keep experiencing that because it was really cool.”

Gold gloves

The Cubs have six Gold Glove finalists. The list was announced Wednesday, three players per position in each league. The Cubs group included a few repeats — left fielder Ian Happ, already a three-time winner; and second baseman Nico Hoerner, who got his first in 2023.

The other finalists are center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong, third baseman Matt Shaw, pitcher Matthew Boyd and catcher Carson Kelly. An interesting inclusion in the AL was Houston right fielder Cam Smith, a Cubs draft pick who was traded for Kyle Tucker last winter.