Spring is near, weary northern Illinoisans. I know that because Woodstock Willie did not see his shadow a week and a half ago, and the Chicago Cubs and White Sox opened spring Training this week in Arizona. The teams will play their first spring training game against each other on Feb. 20 from Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona.
With that in mind, we’re going to get a primer for the 2026 season.
Paul Sullivan, who covers Chicago baseball for the Chicago Tribune, has written about the teams for 44 years. He says for anyone thinking the Chicago Cubs should spend freely like their National League rival Los Angeles Dodgers.
"I don't think they are really looking at it that way, as competing with the Dodgers," said Sullivan. "I think they look at it more as we’re (the Cubs) trying to win a division, get into the playoffs and see how it plays out from there."
Although the Cubs don’t lavishly spend like the Dodgers, most teams don’t either. Sullivan does say it is not like the Cubs are cheap.
"They by far have the biggest payroll in the division, the National League Central, and the Cardinals are retrenching," he said.
Sullivan added, "The Pirates were looking to spend, but not many players wanted to go there."
Sullivan expects the division race to come down again to the Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers, even with the Brewers trading away their pitching staffs ace, Freddy Peralta, this offseason.
Now, on the South Side of Chicago: the White Sox look to 2026 with a different sense of optimism.
The White Sox are "fresh" off three straight 100 loss seasons.
Despite losing 102 games in 2025, the Sox improved by 19 wins from a historically poor 2024 season that was record-setting for its futility.
Soxmachine.com senior writer James Fegan says the White Sox front office feels hopeful the upward trend will continue in 2026.
"At SoxFest, General Manager Chris Getz made an offhand remark when asked how much the team could improve, saying 19 more. That would be incredible," said Fegan.
Adding, "Increasing 19 wins in back-to-back years would be historic."
Fegan highlighted two players on the current White Sox roster who could have the potential for great things.
One is recent free-agent signing Munetaka Murakami, who hit 246 home runs in Japan.
The other player with high ceiling potential Fegan mentioned is 23-year-old infielder Colson Montgomery.
"This is a dude with elite power," Fegan said, “and his defense graded out well at shortstop. If you have 30 home run power AND you can play short stop… it is hard to be bad.”
The White Sox also worked to strengthen their pitching staff, adding veteran pitchers Erick Fedde, Seranthony Dominguez and Jordan Hicks.
Fegan thinks the additions of Domínguez and Hicks should help bolster a bullpen that struggled to hold leads a year ago.
"Adding guys like Domínguez and Hicks gives the Sox more traditional style bullpen guys to go to," said Fegan.
Fegan also says this will afford the White Sox the option to be more strategic in how they use their bullpen throughout the year, as opposed to how they operated the pen last season.
As teams prepare for the first pitch of the 2026 Major League Baseball season in late March, another date looms large.
The current Collective Bargaining Agreement is set to expire Dec.1. Paul Sullivan says negotiations between Major League Baseball owners and the players union could end up being tenuous.
"Many of the owners would like a salary cap, while many of the players do not. So, we’ll just have to see how that works," said Sullivan.
Meanwhile, Fegan says veteran players may have the upcoming CBA deadline more top of mind than younger players.
"A lot of guys have already been through this and now you the league works at a more granular detail," Fegan said. "While the younger guys are so new to the game, they are just thinking about playing that day and chasing their dreams."
The Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs will open their spring training schedule with a game against each other on Feb. 20 from Sloan Park in Mesa, Arizona.
Copy Edited by Eryn Lent
