Who is the face of the Chicago Cubs?
It’s a legitimate question: The Cubs have lots of very good players, some that might even qualify as “stars,” but is anyone on the roster truly elite? When thinking of the Cubs, is there one specific player that comes to mind?
It’s not a question that necessarily has a correct answer. And on Thursday, one insider seemed to have difficulty finding any superstars on the Cubs roster in a new report on talent across the entire sport.
ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel ranked all 30 Major League Baseball teams’ roster “cores” on Thursday, including all players under team control through at least 2026. He ranked the Cubs eighth on his list, up from 16th a season ago.
“The current major league team is almost playoff quality, but it’s the young players who have Chicago in the top 10,” McDaniel said. “(Pete) Crow-Armstrong and (Jordan) Wicks are two players I think will move up a level with another half a season or so of their current performance.”
The Cubs had seven players that McDaniel classed as “plus,” and another 21 that graded as “solid.” But notably, they had no one McDaniel believed to be “elite,” making them the highest-ranked team on the list without a superstar.
To be “elite,” McDaniel’s methodology stated that the player had to be a consistent threat to rack up at least five wins above replacement every year. The Cubs do not have a player with 5+ WAR this season, with Ian Happ leading the way at 4.1.
This has become something of a theme with the Cubs–they have lots of very good players, but no transcendent star. And even if he has been one at times in the past, Cody Bellinger can opt out of his Cubs contract, so he wasn’t included on McDaniel’s list.
The Cubs have two choices to take the next step forward: Either they can go out and back up the money truck for a true superstar like the New York Yankees’ Juan Soto, or hope that one of the young players, like Crow-Armstrong or third base prospect Matt Shaw, develops into one.
Until they have a superstar, though, it’s going to continue to be a struggle for these Cubs to compete for championships. They’ve learned that the hard way the past two seasons, and would be wise to change the formula moving forward.
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