The Chicago Cubs are expected to have a busy offseason this year as they try to add pieces to this roster that can push them into contender status.

After missing the playoffs by one game during 2023, the front office aggressively hired Craig Counsell to be their manager and ownership is willing to spend large amounts of money on free agents.

One of those players they had been linked to was starting pitcher Aaron Nola.

Despite the emergence of Justin Steele and the solid performances of their rookies Javier Assad and Jordan Wicks, the Cubs’ rotation is still inexperienced, despite also having Jameson Taillon and Kyle Hendricks.

Nola was seen as the guy who would be the ace of this team for years to come.

However, Chicago missed out on securing the coveted right-hander after he signed a deal to return to the Philadelphia Phillies where he has spent his entire nine year career.

Reports will eventually trickle out about whether or not the Cubs were even really “in” on signing Nola, but that is a moot point now that he’s off the market.

If Chicago wants to land an ace, they’ll have to target the remaining arms who are available like Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery and Sonny Gray to name a few.

They could also feel like they don’t need to spend top dollar on their starting rotation and trust the pitchers they currently have and the prospects that they have coming up through their pipeline.

The Cubs have also been linked to numerous sluggers this offseason as they look to continue adding power to their lineup in case they can’t re-sign Cody Bellinger.

With one of the big dominoes now off the board, eyes are on Chicago to see what types of moves they’ll make this offseason.