A little over a month until MLB Opening Day, the Chicago Cubs have reportedly agreed to sign Michael Conforto.
Baseball insider Jon Heyman posted on X, formerly Twitter, early Monday morning that Conforto, who spent last season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, was Chicago-bound. At the time of writing, no further information has been reported, including the terms of the reported contract.
Conforto, 32, has been in the majors for more than a decade. Debuting for the New York Mets during the 2015 season, the former 10th overall pick played seven years with the Mets. During that stint, he set career-high marks that included a .322 batting average and .412 on-base percentage (both set in the shortened 2020 season), as well as .555 slugging percentage and .939 OPS back in 2017.
After the 2021 season, during which his numbers sank to .232 AVG, .344 OBP, and .384 OPS, Conforto sustained a shoulder injury that required surgery and kept him off a MLB roster for the entirety of the 2022 season. Once healthy, he signed a two-year, $36 million contract with the San Francisco Giants.
Conforto's numbers did not improve much in his two seasons with San Francisco, and last offseason, he signed with the Giants' NL West rival, the Dodgers, on a one-year, $17 million deal. Despite several other free agents performing well for the World Series-winning Dodgers, Conforto was not one of them, as he set new career lows in every major batting statistical category. As a result of his poor play, Conforto was left off the team's postseason roster.
In his career, Conforto has 179 home runs and 556 RBI. He exclusively played in left field last season but has also played in center and right and as a designated hitter in his career.
