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The deadline for tendering a contract to a player who is arbitration-eligible is next Monday, December 2.
Tim Dierkes at MLB Trade Rumors says he counts 206 such players, and helpfully lists 44 of them who he thinks might not be tendered a contract, and thus would become free agents.
Three Cubs are on the list: the recently-acquired Mat Gamel, reliever Daniel Bard, and, somewhat surprisingly, Darwin Barney.
There are a few players on this list who might be interesting to the Cubs. First, as you know, the Cubs are seeking a backup catcher. Lou Marson and Michael McKenry, both of whom are relatively young, could be possibilities for this role.
Drew Stubbs, a righthanded-hitting outfielder, intrigues me. Yes, he strikes out a ton. But he has always hit well in Wrigley Field: .265/.318/.454 with eight home runs in 196 at-bats. Hitting RH, he could be useful on a team that already has several LH-hitting outfielders.
Among the pitchers on the list, there are several who have had injury issues who have had success in the past who might be worth a flyer if they are non-tendered: Daniel Hudson, Tommy Hanson and Andrew Bailey stand out.
Do you think the Cubs should tender contracts to Gamel, Bard and Barney? Vote in the poll. Non-tendering any or all of those three would open spots on the 40-man roster.
And do you think the Cubs should go after anyone on the MLBTR list?