Cubs Miss Out on All-Star Outfielder to Southside Rivals White Sox

The Chicago Cubs have already had an active offseason, landing Edward Cabrera and Alex Bregman.

It was reported that the Cubs were interested in or had an offer for former All-Star outfielder Austin Hays, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.

One of those other teams was the Chicago White Sox, and that's where he ended up going.

Free agent OF Austin Hays is said to be deciding this weekend where he will sign. Teams that have offered and/or expressed interes are the Reds, Rangers, White Sox, Tigers, Cardinals, Padres and Cubs.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 31, 2026

The White Sox signed Hays to a one-year, $6 million deal, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers.

While the White Sox are still rebuilding and are not currently a threat to the Cubs, this signing proves that they are inching closer to exiting their rebuild.

What would Hays have brought to the Cubs?

Hays, entering his age-31 season, is still an above-average player when healthy. A 2023 All-Star selection, Hays has hit .262 lifetime with a .748 OPS.

In 2025, Hays had a resurgent year with the Cincinnati Reds after an underwhelming 2024 with the Baltimore Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies. In 103 games with the Reds, he hit .266 with 15 home runs and a .768 OPS.

Cincinnati Reds outfielder Austin Hays | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

But the advanced numbers told a different story. According to Baseball Savant, Hays was well below-average in every offensive statistic except barrel rate. However, he is an above-average fielder with elite arm strength. In 2025, his arm strength was in the 88th percentile.

He could be used on most teams as a platoon bat, as he has a .282/.340/.479 slash line against left-handed pitching.

While his offensive profile is nothing to write home about, he has been incredibly consistent throughout his career, with an above-average OPS+ in every full season, except for 2024.

What even was the fit?

Chicago Cubs left fielder Ian Happ (8), center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong (4) and right fielder Seiya Suzuki (27) | Matt Marton-Imagn Images

While the White Sox desperately needed outfield help after shipping off centerfielder Luis Robert Jr., the Cubs couldn't be in better shape currently.

With Pete Crow-Armstrong, Seiya Suzuki and Ian Happ leading the charge, the Cubs currently field one of the best outfields in the sport.

Crow-Armstrong and Happ are Gold Glovers, and Suzuki isn't a negative defensively. All Hays would've potentially brought to the team was an extra right-handed bat in the outfield. However, Matt Shaw, Kevin Alcantara and some of the minor league signings Chicago has made would be displaced.

While it isn't known what the level of interest was in Hays by the Cubs, he would've been a luxury for the Cubs that they may not even need at this point.

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