With 145 runs scored in 24 games, the Chicago Cubs are the highest scoring team in baseball this season, and much of that is due to star outfielder Kyle Tucker. Tucker has been as advertised since coming over in December trade with the Houston Astros: .302/.404/.615 with eight doubles, six homers, and more walks (17) than strikeouts (14). That is superstar production.
Tucker, 28, is scheduled to become a free agent after the season, something the Cubs would surely like to avoid. They are expected to touch base with Tucker and his representatives at Excel Sports at some point about a long-term extension, reports MLB Network.
Can the Cubs get a long-term deal done with Kyle Tucker before he enters free agency?@JonHeyman | #MLBCentral pic.twitter.com/g2bvtKGfdH
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) April 22, 2025
Now that Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has signed long-term with the Toronto Blue Jays, Tucker will be the clear-cut No. 1 free agent on the market after the season. He's a star hitter, he's a great baserunner, he's a good defender, and he won't turn 30 until 2027. Add it all up and you have one of the most desirable free agents to hit the market in recent memory.
The Cubs at times act like baseball's biggest small market team despite being the fourth-most valuable franchise in the sport. They lowered their competitive balance tax (CBT) payroll from $239.9 million last year to $213 million this year, largely by salary dumping Cody Bellinger on the New York Yankees after bringing in Tucker to replace him in right field.
The question is not if the Cubs can afford to keep Tucker long-term. Of course they can. It's a question of willingness on ownership's part. Maybe the Cubs will make Tucker the biggest offer and he'll take less to go elsewhere. It happens, and if it does with Tucker, then the Cubs will have to move on. But there is no reason they should be at a disadvantage, financially.
Tucker will earn $16.5 million this season and is in line for a free-agent contract worth $40-plus-million a year through his age-40 season, so we're talking 11 years and $440 million, if not more. Other than Tucker and Ryan Pressly, the Cubs will not shed any pricey contracts after the season, so payroll will have to go up to re-sign their star outfielder.
The Cubs enter play Tuesday in first place in the NL Central with a 14-10 record. Their plus-41 run differential is the best in baseball.
