Chicago Cubs: Moving on from Seiya Suzuki may be the team’s Plan A

The Chicago Cubs have a spent a bundle this year extending two prized assets on six-year deals—center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and second baseman Nico Hoerner. In total, that amounts to $256 million invested into the team’s future.

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But even with the bundle of money spent this past offseason, including the extensions and free agent signings of Alex Bregman and four relievers, the team will still have a lot of money coming off the books after 2026.

Several core members of the roster could become eligible for free agency at the end of this season, including names such as Ian Happ, Seiya Suzuki, Carson Kelly, Matthew Boyd, Shota Imanaga, and Jameson Taillon.

Happ or Suzuki?

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The outfield situation for Chicago is especially interesting since they could lose both corner outfielders. The 2027 free agent class is not deep with outfielders and both Happ and Suzuki would rank highly on the list of most desired acquisitions if they hit the open market. That’s why the thought is that the front office will make a move to extend at least one of them.

And although Suzuki has a better offensive upside and is a beloved member of the team, re-signing the more consistent and defensively sound Happ may be a more Cubs thing to do.

As a matter of fact, there may already be a Plan B in place for when Suzuki moves on—Ethan Conrad, the team’s first round draft pick in 2025.

By all accounts, Conrad is a true five-tool player who may already be much closer to major league-ready than many anticipate—and this is without having played in one minor league game last season due to a shoulder injury and after starting this season on the IL with a back issue.

The 21-year-old is, apparently, THAT good.

Ethan Conrad lined up to take Suzuki’s spot?

He’s at least good enough and promising enough for the Cubs to not want someone blocking his path to the majors for the next four or five years.

“He’s somebody that can turn a double into a triple with his speed, and I think he’s somebody that is gonna be able to put pressure on the defense in a number of different ways,” Cubs vice president of scouting Dan Kantrovitz said at the time of the draft. “His decision-making, his ability to make contact, his ability to hit for damage — all three of those pillars are there, and we think that he’s just getting better across the board.”

“Ethan is a five-tool player, who is a gamer,” Conrad’s head coach at Wake Forest Tom Walter said. “This is a great pick by the Chicago Cubs. Ethan will be a guy who will play in the big leagues for a long time and is a potential All-Star. His bat-to-ball skills are elite and he is just scratching the surface of his power potential.”

And the Cubs may already have a backup to Conrad.

Kevin Alcantara as a Plan B?

Kevin Alcantara, who’s flirted with a major league role over the last three seasons is tearing things up in Triple-A Iowa so far this year. The 23-year-old has already hit two home runs and a double in 13 at bats.

The Cubs could let Suzuki walk and then roll the dice on Conrad or Alcantara winning the right field spot. They may also pick up a lower-level free agent next season as temporary one-season insurance for that spot. Because of their prospects’ promise, they may not want a corner outfield spot filled for an extended period of time anyway.

Of course, Conrad has to actually play a game of pro ball before he can be anointed the next big outfield thing and Alcantara has to prove that he can be consistently good over an entire season. But the Cubs do have options and they seem more and more likely to trust in them as soon as next season.

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Source: https://www.chicitysports.com/chicago-cubs-moving-on-from-seiya-suzuki-ethan-conrad-kevin-alcantara/