The Chicago Cubs had an early exit in the 2026 postseason, losing the Wild Card Series in two games to the San Diego Padres. 

This offseason should be an intriguing one for the Cubs, who will watch outfielders Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki become free agents. 

Chances are, Chicago will only be able to re-sign just one of its corner outfielders. 

Chicago's priority this winter may be to reinforce a pitching staff that dealt with a boatload of injuries during the year. 

"They need pitching, especially with Cade Horton, Justin Steele, Ben Brown, and Edward Cabrera all missing significant time this past season," Bleacher Report's Erik Beaston wrote. "The team needs to bolster their starting rotation and probably could use an arm or two in the bullpen, too." 

Suzuki had another well above-average season at the plate, hitting 26 home runs with 86 RBIs and a 131 OPS+. 

The Cubs will have fierce competition to re-sign Suzuki, who has already received reported interest from the Toronto Blue Jays, per The Athletic's Mitch Bannon. 

The Athletic's Patrick Mooney and Shahadev Sharma have also reported that a potential reunion between Suzuki and the Cubs is unlikely. 

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"Considering their pitching deficit, it's unlikely that the Cubs will get into a bidding war for (Seiya) Suzuki's services, let alone win one," they wrote. 

This season was Suzuki's fourth consecutive year with 20 or more homers and an OPS of .804 or higher. 

That should warrant a sizeable contract in free agency, but will the Cubs be in the running? 

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