Former White Sox infielder and current Los Angeles Angels player Yoán Moncada has resurfaced as a potential target for the Chicago Cubs. As the Cubs attempt to improve their roster at the trade deadline an upgrade at third base has suddenly popped up on their to-do list and Moncada is the latest option to be connected to the Cubs in trade rumors.
The Cubs reportedly had strong interest in Moncada this past offseason, when he was a free agent and ultimately decided to sign with the Angels. The switch-hitter agreed to a one-year, $5 million contract with the Angels. According to Francys Romero, the Cubs offered Moncada a $3 million salary for the 2025 season.
Now, as we're two weeks away from the MLB trade deadline Moncada could be on the move and the Cubs are among several teams that make sense as a landing spot.
The Cubs were pursuing a few veteran players that could play third base in the offseason and eventually signed Jon Berti to a one-year, $2 million deal. Berti has not played much for the Cubs in 2025, getting a total of 103 plate appearances. The veteran has only posted a .511 OPS. Rookie Matt Shaw has been the primary starter at third base and he's been in a brutal slump since June, which most recently landed the ex-top prospect on the bench heading into the All-Star break.
Moncada is certainly capable of providing a boost at the plate if he's healthy. And well that's the big question that looms over Moncada as the 30-year-old has only played in 36 games so far this season. When he's been on the field this year with the Angels Moncada has slashed .231/.326/.479, in 135 plate appearances.
Moncada missed a month early in the season with a sprained right thumb and was then sidelined a second time in 2025 because of a right knee sprain in June. He returned prior to the All-Star break and played in six games. He was pretty good in May, when he came back from his thumb injury as Moncada posted a .903 OPS with six home runs in 85 plate appearances.
So, add one more player to the list of possible trade targets for the Cubs.
(Previous Update)
Although not a complete bust with the White Sox, free agent third baseman Yoán Moncada was certainly a disappointment during his time on the south side mainly because he couldn't stay on the field. However, there's a chance that the former White Sox player does return to Chicago in 2025...just on the other side of town.
According to baseball insider Francys Romero, the Cubs are among a handful of teams showing interest in signing Moncada this offseason. The other clubs with interest in Moncada are the Toronto Blue Jays and Seattle Mariners.
Several teams, including the Cubs, Mariners, and Blue Jays, remain interested in 3B Yoan Moncada, per sources.
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) January 5, 2025
The third baseman market continues to wait on what happens with Alex Bregman.
Moncada was supposed to be the face of the White Sox as the team emerged from their previous rebuild and when you look over his career you can see why there was so much hype surrounding the switch-hitting infielder. He was a top-10 third baseman from 2019-21, which included a 5.2 fWAR season in 2019, when Moncada had a career-best 139 wRC+.
But 2019 and the juiced balls are in the rearview mirror and while the White Sox did see some glimpses of his talent Moncada has not come close to fulfilling his initial star potential. The 2024 season was almost a wash as Moncada played in 11 total games to begin the season, suffered a strained adductor that kept him out until September and by the time he returned the White Sox had no interest in giving him playing time over younger players. Moncada only played in one game after coming back from the injured list.
The Cubs have been in the market for another infielder this winter, adding a few players to their bench mix already, but still have not acquired someone with any semblance of MLB success. Yet, as much as the Cubs might be interested in netting another infielder it doesn't guarantee them one. In the past week the Cubs have lost out on Josh Rojas, who signed with the White Sox and Korean free agent Hyeseong Kim, who ended up with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Rojas probably saw an easier path to every-day starts with the White Sox, while Kim took one of the bigger deals that he was offered despite going to a crowded infield situation with the Dodgers. While Moncada does seem like a fit for the Cubs, he can be third base insurance and although he hasn't played there in a while, he did begin his career as a second baseman, the question remains how likely will Moncada want to be a bench player in 2025?
He'll be 30-years-old in May and is expected to sign a one-year deal in hopes of reseting his value. The Blue Jays may not have a clear starting spot for Moncada either, so the Mariners could end up being his ultimate landing spot if no other teams step up with an opportunity.
It's been rough for Moncada since 2021, the last time he played close to a full season. He put up solid numbers that year, a 120 wRC+ and 3.7 fWAR in 144 games. Since then, Moncada has only played in 104 games, 92 games and then the dozen in 2024, when he was eventually banished to the bench in the final weeks of the regular season.
Overall in his career, Moncada has slashed .254/.331/.400, 107 wRC+, with a 9.7 BB% and 29.2 K%.
The Cubs don't just want to hand over third base to top prospect Matt Shaw, so that's why we'll continue to see them linked to free agent infielders. They'd preferably want a guy who could bat left-handed too, which Moncada does being a switch-hitter, so we'll see what the former White Sox player decides to do once there's more clarity in the third-base market after Alex Bregman signs.
