Veteran infielder Daniel Murphy could be back with the Chicago Cubs in 2019. Murphy is set to become a free agent when the World Series ends, and the Cubs may try to re-sign him this offseason.

Murphy joined the Cubs in late August when he was traded by the Washington Nationals. He hit .297 with a .329 on-base percentage and a .471 slugging percentage in Chicago. The Cubs went 22-13 with Murphy in the lineup.

In 2019, the Cubs will be without shortstop Addison Russell at the start of the season as he completes his 40-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball's Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy. If Chicago decides to re-sign Murphy, it could keep him at second base while Javier Baez plays shortstop.

"I wouldn't rule anything out," Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein told MLB.com. "He did a lot to right our offense right after he got here and contribute while being asked to play a bigger role than we envisioned when we got him because of injuries and because of a lack of performance offensively and because of the schedule."

"Our guys loved talking about hitting with him," Epstein added. "It was a daily occurrence. We looked a lot better with him than without him."

Murphy, who finished the 2018 season with a .299/.336/.454 slash line in 91 games, will turn 34 next April.