The biggest question facing the Chicago Cubs at the end of the offseason was whether they should have added an established closer at the backend of the bullpen. The Cubs flirted with the idea, expressing interest in Ryan Helsley and Pete Fairbanks at one point, but ultimately settled for a quantitative approach to reconstructing their bullpen. It's why Craig Counsell wasted little time in anointing Daniel Palencia as the team's closer.
Short of Hunter Harvey staying healthy, Palencia was the obvious choice. Still, after he lost the closer's role toward the end of the 2025 season, the impression was that the Cubs may use the trade deadline this season to look for their next version of what Aroldis Chapman was to the 2016 team.