Cubs Reportedly Among Teams Interested in Former White Sox 3B Yoán Moncada
The Cubs have stripped away nearly all of their big-league depth at third base, leaving Matt Shaw as the clear frontrunner for the position with Miles Mastrobuoni and Rule 5 pickup Gage Workman as the next line of defense. They’d obviously like to add a viable option to challenge Shaw during spring training and provide a safety net should the club’s No. 1 prospect falter. Given Nico Hoerner‘s uncertain availability following offseason forearm surgery and the strong potential for Dansby Swanson to need a little time off here and there, positional versatility appears to have been the priority to this point.
But now that the Cubs have missed out on both Josh Rojas and Hyeseong Kim, both of whom can play at least three infield positions in addition to emergency outfield work, the focus has narrowed a bit. Yoán Moncada has previously been theorized as a target and just resurfaced in a report from Francys Romero claiming the Cubs, Mariners, and Blue Jays “remain interested” in the former White Sox third baseman. Romero noted that the third base market may have to wait on Alex Bregman, — who I don’t really think the Cubs are in on — though I don’t really think Moncada is poised to capitalize on either a wave or vacuum created by Bregman’s decision.
That might have been the case a few years ago when Moncada sandwiched seasons of 5.2 and 3.7 fWAR around a disappointing 2020 campaign. Since then, he’s struggled with injuries and has managed to play in just 208 games with 2.2 total fWAR. That includes a very truncated 2024 season that saw him accumulate only 45 plate appearances, leading the Sox to an obvious decision to decline his $25 million club option. That would have been in addition to the five-year, $70 million extension he had signed a few years back.
Quick aside: Romero also reported the news of the Sox declining Moncada’s option, so it’s reasonable to assume he’s got a good connection to the infielder’s camp.
The issue here isn’t so much Moncada’s ceiling, which remains relatively high as he enters his age-30 season. Rather, it’s a floor that’s so low it’s actually a cellar that experiences flooding on a regular basis. His production has swung wildly from one season to the next — not just in terms of counting numbers — and he hasn’t played a position other than third since logging 148 games at second in 2018. Could he slide over to the keystone for a few games? Maybe, but he was literally the worst defensive second baseman in baseball by several measures when he played there and he would need to rake to make up for that.
It’s clear the Cubs value versatility, but they’d also like to add more power from either side at as low a cost as they can manage. While Moncada should come cheap based on recent performance, or lack thereof, his glove is suspect and his pop is only slightly above average if we offer the benefit of the doubt. With -3 defensive runs saved since 2019, Moncada ranks 66th among 105 third basemen with at least 500 innings in that time. Outs above average paints a better picture, so perhaps he’s not a butcher.
His .170 career ISO is only about four points ahead of the rest of the league since 2016, and that’s with his aberrant .233 in 2019 lifting the total. Take that out and he’s basically Alec Bohm or Andrew Benintendi in terms of power. Moncada does have an advantage in that he’s a switch-hitter with relatively similar splits, but none of that matters if he can’t stay on the field. He’s played in more than 140 games only twice in seven years since becoming a regular, and he’s played in 104 or fewer in four of those seasons. Even with the expectation that he’ll be a backup, durability concerns make this a crapshoot.
The only way I see it making sense is if he really wants to stay in Chicago and would agree to an incentive-laden deal that removes almost all risk for the Cubs. He won’t be able to get close to that $25 million figure, but a pillow deal with a low base and several performance escalators might provide the motivation to make him a legit factor whether Shaw wins the job or not. And I would imagine the Cubs very much want Shaw to take the reins during spring training.
It would be kind of fitting to bring in a guy who hit his first career homer against the Cubs, a solo shot off Jake Arrieta. The last time the Cubs signed a former highly-touted prospect who collected his first career dinger against them, they won the World Series the following season. So in that respect, I suppose Moncada would just be a much cheaper version of Jason Heyward. Sign me up!
Okay, not really. I think this is more a matter of convenience and proximity than anything, with some obvious connections and a team need making the connection look stronger than it really is. It’s also possible Moncada’s camp is just trying to squeeze a few extra bucks out of another team. That said, I can see the Cubs having interest if the price gets low enough that the risk is almost completely mitigated.