"Reminds me of Kris Bryant in Colorado" - Cubs fans unbothered by Kyle Tucker's future in Chicago after NLDS heartbreak

The Cubs were recently eliminated from this year's postseason after five exciting games against the Brewers in the National League Division Series. After finding themselves down 0-2 in the series, the Cubbies fought back and evened it before eventually falling in Game 5. With the Northsiders' elimination, one big talking point for the team is whether or not star left fielder Kyle Tucker will remain with the squad.

Ahead of the 2025 season, the Astros dealt Tucker's expiring contract to the Cubs in exchange for Cam Smith, Hayden Wesneski, and Isaac Paredes. Although Tucker had a brilliant start to the year, he virtually disappeared down the stretch having hit just five home runs since July that was capped off by a disappointing .231/.360/.378 slash line for the second half of the season. His struggles were lamented by Cubs fans that are calling for the team to move on from the star.

In terms of postseason contributions, Tucker recorded a home run and one run batted in with five base on balls in 24 at-bats this year. Although he's been regarded as the centerpiece of Chicago's offense, it was actually first baseman Michael Busch and outfielder Seiya Suzuki who contributed most for the team during their playoff run.

With names such as Kyle Schwarber, Cody Bellinger, and Alex Bregman all hitting the market this winter, many eyes would be on Tucker as to where he will bring his slugging prowess next.

Cubs fall short in reverse sweep bid against Brewers in NLDS

The Cubs bowed out of this year's postseason after losing a close 3-1 contest in Game 5 of the NLDS. Going into the game, the momentum was on the side of the Northsiders having evened up the series against the Brewers after initially losing the first two games.

Rookie hurler Jacob Misiorowski was at his brilliant best for the Brew Crew after a four-inning relief outing of just one-run ball on three base hits with three strikeouts. On the other hand, the Cubbies' pitching staff tried to hold the line but it was the offense that was the biggest let down in the decider.

Chicago's only score came via Seiya Suzuki's solo shot in the second inning as the order managed to produce just four hits. Meanwhile, the Brewers fared a bit better courtesy of a consolidated effort from William Contreras, Andrew Vaughn, and Brice Turang. Milwaukee are now set to face the defending champion Dodgers in the NLCS.

About the author

Daniel Santiago is a journalist who has been reporting on baseball at Sportskeeda since 2022. He was drawn towards the sport after the underlying statistics and the analysis surrounding it grabbed his attention.

Daniel particularly enjoys furnishing reports about historic events in baseball and analyzing the game through a statistic-based outlook, based on Fangraphs and Baseball-Reference. This is in line with how he enjoyed watching baseball as a pastime. As a writer, he is very particular about cross-checking from reputable sources and doing his due diligence.

He became a lifelong Hideki Matsui fan after his exploits in the 2009 World Series for the New York Yankees. Among the current generation, Daniel's favorites include Shohei Ohtani and Jung Hoo Lee. Daniel is a huge follower of Asian baseball and both Ohtani and Lee have been in the top echelon of their respective leagues during their time with the NPB and KBO.

His favorite moment as a baseball fan was the final at-bat of the 2023 World Baseball Classic between Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout. He believes there aren't many words to fittingly describe the intensity of the moment.

As an avid sports fan, Daniel watches other sports and Esports when not writing about baseball.

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Edited by Daniel Santiago