The Chicago Cubs added another experienced bat to camp Monday, reaching a minor-league agreement with veteran outfielder Michael Conforto, Feb. 23, 2026. The move gives Chicago a low-risk upside play after a difficult 2025 in Los Angeles and sets up a spring battle for roster depth behind the Cubs’ established starting trio.
Multiple reports described the signing as a minor-league deal, giving Michael Conforto a chance to force his way onto the Opening Day roster with a strong Cactus League showing. MLB Network first reported the agreement, and the news was later confirmed publicly by Cubs manager Craig Counsell, according to ESPN.
Why the Cubs took a chance on Michael Conforto
For the Cubs, the appeal is straightforward: depth, experience and a left-handed hitter who has shown impact power at his best. Chicago’s everyday outfield is largely set — with Pete Crow-Armstrong, Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki projected to handle most starts — but the team has openly been stacking contingency plans behind them as spring training gets underway. MLB.com framed the decision as part of Chicago’s push to “build up the depth” beyond the starters, with Michael Conforto joining the mix as a non-roster option (MLB.com report).
That context matters because the Cubs’ bench and Triple-A shuttle spots can decide games over a six-month season. A minor-league deal is often the front office’s favorite kind of bet: if Michael Conforto looks like his old self, the Cubs gain a major-league contributor; if not, they can pivot quickly without a heavy payroll commitment.
Michael Conforto’s rough Dodgers season, by the numbers
Michael Conforto is coming off a 2025 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers that didn’t match either his previous reputation or his contract. Reuters reported he hit .199 with 12 home runs and 36 RBIs in 138 games, and that he was left off the Dodgers’ postseason roster even as the club went on to win the World Series (Reuters).
MLB’s official stats page underscores how far the year dipped: Michael Conforto finished with a .199 average and a .638 OPS in 2025, production well below his career norms (MLB player page). That’s the backdrop to this Cubs agreement — a reset button after a season that cratered his market.
ESPN’s reporting emphasized the same reality: Michael Conforto will have to earn his way onto the club during spring training, not walk into a guaranteed role (ESPN).
How Michael Conforto fits in Chicago’s outfield picture
The most realistic path for Michael Conforto is as a complementary outfielder — a left-handed option who can spell starters, pinch-hit, and cover multiple spots if injuries strike. Chicago has already brought in other veteran outfielders on similar spring invites, making the competition crowded and performance-driven.
One recent roster projection from the Chicago Sun-Times laid out the picture before the Conforto news, listing Happ, Crow-Armstrong and Suzuki as the starters while noting a battle among non-roster invitees for the fourth-outfielder job (Chicago Sun-Times roster projection). In that kind of squeeze, Michael Conforto doesn’t need to be a star — he needs to be useful, healthy and productive in the role the Cubs actually have open.
A quick timeline: what led Michael Conforto to this moment
To understand why a player with Conforto’s résumé is taking a minor-league deal, it helps to zoom out. Michael Conforto was once a centerpiece bat for the New York Mets, and by mid-2017 he was being discussed as one of the National League’s elite outfielders (MLB.com (2017) on his All-Star case).
After the 2021 season, he declined the Mets’ qualifying offer and entered free agency, a decision that shaped the next stretch of his career (MLB.com (2021) on the qualifying offer decision). Then came the biggest disruption: Conforto underwent right shoulder surgery and missed the entire 2022 season, a major turning point for both his timing and his market (CBS News/AP (2022) on the surgery).
He resurfaced with the San Francisco Giants on a two-year deal ahead of the 2023 season — a pact that was widely seen as a prove-it step after the lost year (Giants press release (2023)). From there, the Dodgers opportunity followed, and now the Cubs become the latest stop as Michael Conforto tries to rebuild value again.
What has to change for Michael Conforto to stick
The Cubs don’t need 2017 Michael Conforto to “win” this move — but they do need a version closer to his career baseline than his 2025 line. The best-case scenario is a rebound in quality of contact and consistency against right-handed pitching, enough to justify a bench role and start opportunities when matchups or workload demand it.
For Michael Conforto, the upside is obvious: a strong spring can turn a minor-league deal into a big-league job, and a productive first half can quickly change the narrative around him. For the Cubs, it’s a depth play with potential payoff — and another reminder that spring training roster spots are earned, not handed out.
