Moises

Ballesteros

Sharma and Mooney add that the Cubs are bracing for Kyle Tucker’s expected departure in free agency and are prepared to give top prospects Owen Caissie and Moises Ballesteros extended runway in the majors. Still, they’re not closing the door on a potential position-player addition. Chicago reportedly made a legitimate push for Bregman last spring before he ultimately landed in Boston. The 31-year-old defensive stalwart produced a robust .273/.360/.462 triple-slash line with 18 homers and 62 RBI across 114 games. His 44.4 percent hard-hit rate was the best of his career. The production, however, came in two distinct acts: Bregman hit .298 with 11 homers in 53 games before a serious quad injury, then managed just a .250 average and seven homers in 61 contests after the All-Star break. His arrival would squeeze former top prospect Matt Shaw off third base and into a likely multi-position utility role.

At this point, it feels like Kyle Tucker is a long shot to return to the Cubs, so the team will likely replace him by “reallocating resources to different parts of the roster.” Mooney suggests that Seiya Suzuki will play more right field, and the Cubs will use much of the extra money to bolster their rotation, which means young hitters Owen Caissie and Moisés Ballesteros will get a chance “to develop and improve at the major-league level.” As of now, Caissie, a top 100 prospect, appears to have the upper hand after putting together an .887 OPS in Triple-A over the last two seasons. He has more defensive value than Ballesteros, who is more of a DH right now than a 1B/C, but this may come down to a spring training battle between the two.

The 21-year-old backstop added on an insurance run with an RBI single off of Ryan Fernandez in the seventh inning, extending the Cubs’ lead to 2-0. He has impressed in his limited time with the big league club, slashing .298/.394/.474 with two homers, 11 RBI and a 12/9 K/BB ratio over 66 plate appearances.

Tucker, returning from a strained calf, is DHing and batting cleanup Friday in his first appearance since Sept. 2. Carlos Santana was sent down to make room for him. Moisés Ballesteros, who has been doing much of the DHing of late, heads back to the bench today.

Ballesteros took Johan Oviedo deep to give the Cubs a 4-0 lead in the first inning. The 21-year-old was lifted for a pinch-hitter after a lefty came in, but he’s now slashing .308/.386/.538 in his limited time with Chicago in 2025. The future appears to be very, very bright for Ballesteros.

Suzuki has been out of action for nearly one week at this juncture as he deals with an undisclosed illness. Cubs manager Craig Counsell revealed that he traveled with the club to Pittsburgh, so fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now. It’ll be rookie slugger Moisés Ballesteros continuing to occupy the DH spot with versatile utility specialist Willi Castro patrolling right field in his absence. Hopefully there will be some clarity on his status at some point soon.

Suzuki has been out of action for nearly a week at this juncture due to an unspecified illness. It’ll be rookie slugger Moisés Ballesteros continuing to occupy the DH spot with versatile utility specialist Willi Castro patrolling right field. The fact he hasn’t been sent to the injured list offers some hope that he’ll be ready to return at some point this week.

There’s little incentive to rush Suzuki back with rookie Moisés Ballesteros swinging a hot bat at the moment. There should be some additional clarity on the 31-year-old’s status before the weekend wraps up. He’s presumably day-to-day heading into Monday’s series opener against the Pirates.

Ballesteros’ first big-league homer was both emphatic and oddly poetic — a 103.7 mph rocket off Rays starter Drew Rasmussen that landed in the left-field seats after glancing off Cubs legend Anthony Rizzo’s outstretched hand. The 21-year-old rookie was intentionally walked his next time up and came around to score on ensuing batter Dansby Swanson’s two-run double to left field. He figures to get some run at DH while Kyle Tucker (calf) remains on the injured list for at least the early portion of next week.

Moisés Ballesteros gets another turn at DH with fellow top prospect Owen Caissie patrolling right field in this one. Suzuki has missed two straight games due to an unspecified illness. He’s presumably day-to-day heading into Sunday’s series finale.