The Chicago Cubs are in the midst of a resurgent second half of the MLB season that has them in the thick of the playoff race. There is a chance that they win the NL Central, but if not, they have a good shot of sneaking in as a wild card in the National League as well. Nevertheless, it will be very tough for them to get through an NL that has juggernauts in the Atlanta Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers, so the chances that they bring home a World Series ring this year are definitely slim. This is why it is never too early to look ahead towards the 2023-2024 MLB offseason for free agents that the Cubs should target. Given their current season, the Cubs need to go after some starting pitching during MLB free agency.

The Cubs lineup is pretty stacked and their main core is locked up for years to come. Additionally, their bullpen has been really strong this season, as their late game guys like Mark Leiter Jr, Julian Merryweather, and Adbert Alzolary look like they could be mainstays in Chicago for quite some time. When looking at this Cubs roster, it is pretty easy to point to their starting pitching as the biggest weakness across the team. It would be a lot stronger if they had Marcus Stroman, but he has been on the IL for quite some time and his return to the active roster is nowhere near in sight. This is why the Cubs should make starting pitchers their primary free agent targets during the 2023-2024 MLB offseason. This will start with trying to retain Stroman who is going to be a free agent, although they should also target Shohei Ohtani and Julio Urias.

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Marcus Stroman 

Marcus Stroman was having a very strong season for the Cubs before being put on the Injured List, and he was on the brink of a return before suffering an ominous rib injury that now has the rest of his season in jeopardy. Before his injury, Stroman was 10-8 with a 3.85 ERA, although the ERA was much better before giving up 17 earned runs in his last three starts. Overall, he was doing his job at the top of the Cubs starting rotation, enough so that the Cubs should try to bring him back once he hits MLB free agency this offseason.

Stroman has a career ERA of 3.64, a very solid mark for a guy who has been a starting pitcher for nine seasons. He will have plenty of suitors in MLB free agency, but the Cubs should prioritize making him a target given the one-two punch he currently forms with Justin Steele at the top of their rotation. If the Cubs are able to bring him back, they would give themselves a great chance of getting one more starting arm to give them one of the better rotations in baseball.

Shohei Ohtani

Shohei Ohtani is going to be arguably the most coveted MLB free agent of all time. The Cubs are going to be one of many who are going to make him a target, and although their chances will be as good as anybody else's, it is likely a long shot that he signs with the Cubs. Nevertheless, the Cubs are going to have the payroll that will allow them to sign Ohtani to the contract that he is going to warrant, so they mind as well take a chance at the once-in-a-generation player.

Of course, signing Ohtani to bolster their pitching staff will be a little ambitious given the fact that he just tore his UCL and is likely going to undergo Tommy John Surgery. Still, his goal is to return to the mound during his career, and if anybody could recover and return to dominance, it would be Ohtani. Additionally, the consolation prize of having to wait for his return to starting pitching is the fact that the Cubs would still get to put Ohtani in the lineup, pretty much adding the best hitter in baseball to a pretty solid unit already. Once MLB free agency arrives, the Cubs needs to join in on the sweepstakes and target free agent Shohei Ohtani.

Julio Urias

Julio Urias was a highly touted prospect in the Los Angeles Dodgers farm system before being called up in 2016, and he has definitely lived up to the billing. Although he is having a down season with a 4.41 ERA, he has a career ERA of 3.07, including back-to-back seasons with an ERA under 3.00 in 2021 and 2022. The down year might make the Dodgers less inclined to bring him back, and this is where the Cubs should pounce and make him one of their sneaky free agent targets.

Urias is only 27-years-old, so he still has plenty of great baseball left to pitch, and there is a good chance that he hasn't thrown his best games yet. The Cubs already stole one former stud from the Dodgers in Cody Bellinger last offseason, and that move is paying dividends with his return to MVP form. When Urias hits the free agent market this summer, the Cubs should steal another Dodgers long-time player, making Urias a key piece of their starting rotation. Overall, Julio Urias should be one of the Cubs priority targets in MLB free agency during the 2023-2024 offseason.