Friday’s non-tender deadline, paired with the deadline to set reserve lists earlier this week, set the foundation for the Cubs’ offseason.

The Cubs did not tender contracts to left-handed pitcher Brailyn Marquez, outfielder Rafael Ortega or right-handed pitcher Alexander Vizca?no before Friday’s deadline, making them free agents.

Ortega, who was arbitration-eligible for the first time, has provided a left-handed bat to the Cubs’ outfield mix the past two season. This year, he hit .241, mostly against right-handed hitters, and broke his finger in mid-September, ending his season.

Marquez and Vizca?no missed the 2022 season. Marquez, once the Cubs’ top pitching prospect, has battled injuries the last couple years and underwent season-ending surgery on his left shoulder in June. Vizca?no, who the Cubs acquired from the Yankees last year as part of the Anthony Rizzo trade, spent the season on the restricted list after failing to report in Spring Training.

The Cubs also avoided arbitration with a pair of right-handed pitchers, agreeing to terms on 2023 contracts with Adrian Sampson ($1.9 million) and Rowan Wick ($1.55 million).

The club tendered contracts to 31 players on the 40-man roster, including four who are arbitration eligible: outfielder Ian Happ, infielders Nico Hoerner and Nick Madrigal, and right-handed reliever Codi Heuer. The club and each player have until mid-January to agree on a salary for next year or exchange figures.

The Cubs also claimed infielder Rylan Bannon off waivers from the Braves on Friday. Bannon, a Joliet native, made his MLB debut in May. He went 2-for-14 in the majors this year, split between the Orioles and the Braves. Meanwhile, he slashed .249/.367/.421 in Triple-A.

Here’s where the roster stands, including holes to fill over the winter.

Infield

The Cubs are looking to add power to their lineup, and the infield provides the most flexibility to do so of any position group.

The team could add a more experienced bat alongside first baseman Matt Mervis, who is expected to debut next year. Nico Hoerner can play shortstop or move back to second base, putting the Cubs in the conversation to land one of the elite shortstops on the free agent market.

The Cubs have several internal third base options, including Bannon, Patrick Wisdom, Christopher Morel and Zach McKinstry. But all three can play multiple positions.

Outfield

“Talking to a lot of these outfielders, left and right are taken,” manager Davis Ross said during the Cubs’ last series of the season in Cincinnati. “Pretty simple. There’s an open spot, and it’s in center field.”

The Cubs could fill the spot internally, by committee as they did last season, or look at external options.

Catcher

Willson Contreras officially hit free agency when he rejected the qualifying offer from the Cubs on Tuesday. Veteran Yan Gomes was the backup last year but still played in 86 games. He slides into a more prominent role for now, but the Cubs could use more quality depth at the position.

Rotation

“As far as the future of the rotation,” lefty Justin Steele told the Sun-Times at the end of the season, “if you go and add a top-of-the-line arm to what we already have, you can see something really special unfold.”

President of baseball operations Jed Hoyer has listed adding to the starting rotation as an offseason priority – along with filling holes in the bullpen and adding offensive power. But he has talked around promising a “top of the rotation” arm.

Bullpen

The Cubs have found success rounding out the bullpen with veterans on short-term deals. They don’t have an obvious closer heading into next year. They do have a number of younger pitchers who could develop into strong back-end relievers for years to come, including Brandon Hughes, Jeremiah Estrada, Manuel Rodr?guez, Erich Uelmen, Rowan Wick and Heuer, who is expected to return from Tommy John surgery rehab partway through the season.

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The last game Lonzo Ball played in came on Jan. 14, in a one-sided home loss to the Golden State Warriors.

Including Friday’s game with Orlando, the point guard has now missed 58-straight contests and 63 total with the Bulls.

So when Billy Donovan was again asked about a Ball update before the Magic game, the coach eagerly answered as if there was something positive to report.

“It’s going slow, but he’s doing more, he’s doing more, and he’s doing more,” Donovan said. “He’s still not obviously running, but he’s doing different things that he couldn’t do before.”

Once again proving that upbeat Ball updates are very relative.

“Outside of that, until he’s running, jumping or cutting, I just don’t know how far away [he is],” the coach added.

Which means still no timetable, despite Ball now being outside of the four-to-six week re-evaluation window that was originally given after he underwent a second left knee surgery in late September.

Best-case scenario for a Ball return?

It’s not really worth even speculating on, except that the organization was still holding out hope that there would be one at some point this season.

Not that anyone should be shocked by Ball’s seemingly slow return, especially since he was very transparent about how he wanted to handle his return this time around.

“For me, this will be my third surgery so this time around I really don’t want to rush anything,” Ball said the last time he spoke to the media in September. “I think like last time [in January], I wanted to get back to the playoffs and stuff, and I thought – we all thought – that was going to be the case and unfortunately it wasn’t, so this time we need to just take it as slow as we need to take it and come back 100%.”

Then factor in that his father, LaVar, thought Lonzo was rushed back too quickly by the Lakers when he had his first surgery, and there’s even more reason to believe that the plan is likely focusing on being overly-cautious this time around.

“[Missing the entire season is] not in my mind right now, but that would be the worst-case scenario,” Ball said. “I’m at a point now where I know I can’t get back out there until I’m comfortable playing and can actually play. So whenever that day comes, that’s when I’ll have the jersey back on.”

White out

Coby White made his return to the rotation on Friday, after the combo guard missed the last eight games with a thigh contusion.

He was on a minutes restriction, however, and didn’t expect that to change for at least a few more games.

“Just trying to get him back into the flow of things,” Donovan said. “He really hasn’t had a practice, just a shootaround [Friday morning]. He did things [Thursday] with some of the player development guys, so he’s gotten work in.”

White was averaging a career-low 8.1 points per game before the injury, and was shooting just 29.4% from three. Donovan, however, wasn’t concerned with his slow start.

“The one thing I respect about him is he always internally reflects on what he can do better,” Donovan said. “Whatever he can do to help the team is always his mentality.”

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The World Cup kicks off Sunday in Qatar, with the first match of the monthlong tournament featuring Qatar and Ecuador at 10 a.m.

Arguably the most popular international sporting event in the world, the World Cup features 32 senior men’s national teams divided among eight groups. The top two teams from each group advance to the knockout stage, which begins Dec. 3.

Reigning champion France is in Group D, along with Australia, Tunisia and Denmark, and has the depth and experience on its roster to retain its title. The United States is in Group B with England, Iran and Wales and opens play at 1 p.m. Monday against Wales. The furthest the U.S. men have made it in the tournament is the semifinals. (The United States has won the Women’s World Cup four times.) Mexico is in Group C with Argentina, Saudi Arabia and Poland.

The final will be played at 10 a.m. Dec. 18.

Chicago has a deeply rooted international soccer culture that will be on full display in the next four weeks at a handful of pubs that have earned a citywide reputation as go-tos for the world’s game.

Places such as The Globe Pub and A.J. Hudson’s are soccer staples in Chicago, and others are just beginning to be recognized as such. Some draw large crowds from specific countries, but all are destinations for international soccer fans.

One City Tap, 3115 S. Archer Avenue

Marco Antonio Lopez of McKinley Park opened One City Tap five years ago after a career in the restaurant industry.

One City Tap quickly earned a nod as one of Chicago’s go-to soccer bars when it began hosting Fire watch parties last year. As the World Cup begins, it is highlighting two teams specifically: Mexico and the United States.

One City Tap will open its doors at noon for all matches, except when it opens at 10 a.m. Tuesday for Mexico’s first match against Poland.

R Public House, 1508 W. Jarvis Ave.

This pub initially struggled with its decision to show the World Cup this year, but R Public House in Rogers Park will be donating $1 from every draft pour of Hazy Pitch IPA to the Nepal Youth Foundation.

”We really wrestled with the fact of whether we should show it at all because of what’s happened,” owner Renee Labrana said, referring to the many Nepalese migrants in Qatar who have faced poor working conditions for years.

”We knew even if we boycotted it, people were going to watch it. . . . We chose to at least try and give back and raise awareness.”

Simone’s, 960 W. 18th St.

Simone’s will kick off World Cup viewings Tuesday, when Mexico goes against Poland. The bar will prioritize games featuring Central American and South American teams, according to its manager, but also will be showing all U.S. games.

For now, there are no drink specials at Simone’s, but the kitchen will be open for fans who want to purchase Mexican-inspired pub grub.

Fans of Team Mexico frequented this spot during World Cups past, and fans of Mexico’s club teams can catch games here throughout the season, making it a staple for any real ”futbol” fans.

Cleos, 1935 W. Chicago Ave.

Cleos already is preparing for the group-stage match between England and the United States at 1 p.m. Friday, for which it is expecting a rowdy crowd.

Cleos earned a reputation as one of Chicago’s premier soccer hubs after a discussion the bar’s ownership and management had 10 years ago. Trying to decide what the bar’s identity should be, they came to the conclusion that turning into a college football bar wouldn’t serve their community.

”We felt like soccer was something that our neighborhood could really get into,” soccer manager Maggie Ednie said.

Cleos isn’t home to any national team specifically, but a number of its patrons are supporters of the United States, Mexico, Germany and England.

Damen Tavern, 701 N. Damen Ave.

If Cleos ends up being too crowded, Damen Tavern will be open for business throughout the tournament with its usual drink deals: $3 Bud Lights and $25 buckets of domestic beers.

Bartender Amanda Lopez Martinez, who describes herself as a casual soccer fan, said the bar will be hosting a special screening of the Mexico-Argentina game next Saturday. The tavern will prioritize promoting the weekend games, which draw some of the largest fan bases in Chicago.

The Embassy Public House, 1435 W. Taylor St.

Lifelong soccer fan and general manager Adrian Lewis says The Embassy has received more than 120 reservations from fans who want to catch the U.S. games, which begin Monday against Wales.

”I’m a big football fan,” said Lewis, who is from England. ”Obviously, I’m looking forward to England and Wales because my parents were from Wales originally.”

The Embassy is an Irish-owned European pub that will be opening earlier than usual for the 7 a.m. matches. Fans can catch all of the matches there, including potential reruns of 4 a.m. games. The bar has special drink promotions planned, with Krombacher for Germany games and Modelo for Mexico games.

A.J. Hudson’s, 3801 N. Ashland Ave.

Formerly Ginger Ale House, A.J. Hudson’s has been a soccer staple in Chicago since the early ’90s. The Lake View bar has been known to draw a large crowd of England supporters but is a go-to spot for fans to watch any and all international soccer matches.

For the World Cup, it will be featuring sponsored cocktails for each team.

”Whether it’s a feature beer, spirit or cocktail, we’re trying to get as close to representing each country as possible,” A.J. Hudson’s bar manager said.

It won’t be showing the 4 a.m. games live, but it will have replays airing when it opens for 7 a.m. matches.

Chicago Fire World Cup watch parties

Fire Pitch, a community sports complex in North Center, is the Chicago Fire’s official hot spot for viewing all of the World Cup matches, except for those that kick off at 4 a.m. Soccer fans can enjoy access to specialty food and drinks, including quiches, pierogi and tacos.

The watch parties at Fire Pitch also include access to the Fire’s exclusive co-branded merchandise for fans of Mexico, Poland and Switzerland.

The Fire also will be hosting a watch party Friday in the Grand Ballroom at Navy Pier in anticipation of the United States-England match at 1 p.m. Admission to the Navy Pier watch party is free and is on a first-come, first-served basis. Food and beverages will be available for purchase.

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The White Sox declined to tender 2023 contracts to outfielder Adam Engel and infielder Danny Mendick Friday.

Engel, 30, struggled at times during his sixth season, batting .224/.269/.310 with two home runs and 12 stolen bases in 119 games.

Mendick, 29, batted .289/.343/.443 with three homers in 31 games in 2022 before suffering a season-ending torn ACL in his right knee in a collision with outfielder Adam Haseley on June 22 against Toronto. Mendick filled in capably offensively and defensively while shortstop Tim Anderson was injured, and can play multiple positions, including the outfield.

“We appreciate all that Adam and Danny did for our organization in 2022 and during prior seasons,” general manager Rick Hahn said. “As we have said at other times, a lot of consideration and analysis goes into the club deciding to forego the arbitration process and instead engage with players and their representatives as free agents. Our plan is to stay in contact with all three players and evaluate their ongoing fit with our club as we move forward through this offseason.”

The team also non-tendered outfielder Mark Payton, a 30-year-old St. Rita graduate who went 3-for-21 in eight games.

The deadline to tender contracts to arbitration-eligible players was Friday at 7 p.m. CT.

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Los Angeles Rams take the Bears 6th round pick off the practice squad

The Los Angeles Rams need help at the offensive line positions. The unit has been playing musical chairs as the Rams deal with injuries this season. Those injuries haven’t helped the Rams’ offense win games. The defending Super Bowl Champions come into Week 11 with a 3-6 record.

The Rams’ desperation had the team looking for offensive linemen off other teams’ practice squads. They found one who couldn’t make the cut on the active roster for the bad Bears’ offensive line. According to Brad Biggs with the Chicago Tribune, the Rams signed offensive lineman Zachary Thomas.

Thomas was a 2022 sixth-round selection for the Bears. The San Diego State product was considered a project for the Bears out of the draft. He played tackle in college but was thought to transfer to the NFL as a guard. Thomas didn’t seem to be making any great progress with the Bears this season. He made no appearances with the Bears in the regular season.

It’ll be interesting to see what Thomas can accomplish with head coach Sean McVay with the Rams.

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Bears running back David Montgomery is playing in the NFL’s best rushing attack by far, but he’s the only one who isn’t putting up splashy numbers in it.

While Montgomery hasn’t voiced a syllable of frustration, it’s really bad timing as he heads into free agency at the end of the season. These remaining seven games are his last chance to earn a big contract, whether that’s an extension with the Bears or a restart elsewhere.

Montgomery, fellow running back Khalil Herbert and quarterback Justin Fields have roughly the same number of rushes, but Fields is second in the league at 7.2 yards per carry and Herbert is tied for fourth at six while Montgomery has managed just 3.8. Fourteen NFL running backs are averaging 4.8 or more yards per rush.

Herbert’s hip injury hurts the offense — Montgomery called it a “super big loss” — and will keep him out until at least Week 16 against the Bills. But it also almost certainly will mean more carries for Montgomery starting with the game against the Falcons on Sunday.

The Bears are going to use rookie Trestan Ebner in the running game, but it probably won’t be the same split of carries they had between Montgomery and Herbert. Montgomery got 115 carries to Herbert’s 89 in games when both played. It’s reasonable to expect 75% or more of the running back carries to go to Montgomery against the Falcons.

Bears coaches swear by Montgomery’s pass-blocking, and that’s been extremely valuable this season. There’s a significant dropoff in that department from him to any of the other running backs. He also is universally respected throughout Halas Hall for his tenacity and toughness.

But blocking and grit typically aren’t the main measurements of a running back when teams weigh how much to spend. It’s the most difficult position at which to get paid, and running backs have to be game changers like Derrick Henry or Jonathan Taylor to hit jackpot.

It usually comes down to yardage more than anything. At 434 yards, Montgomery ranks 30th in the league. He also has two rushing touchdowns and has caught 15 passes for 150 yards.

Whereas Herbert is second in the NFL at 1.91 yards over expected per rush according to NFL Next Gen Stats, Montgomery is getting .03 yards fewer than expected on his runs.

General manager Ryan Poles was asked last month if the shared backfield dampened his view on Montgomery as part of the Bears’ future and said no.

“David has run really, really well — he runs hard,” Poles said, highlighting a distinction between Montgomery’s power game and Herbert’s shiftier, speedier style. “One of my favorite players on the team [because of] how he approaches the game and attacks it on Sundays.”

He has gotten a career-low 12.8 carries per game after averaging 16.2 before this season.

Montgomery’s 122 yards on 15 carries against the Packers in Week 2 was his best game of the season, but he hasn’t hit 70 in a game outside of that night. In 54 games, including one playoff appearance, he has topped 100 eight times and had under 40 in 16 games.

Even though most of his career was in Matt Nagy’s run-deficient offense, that’s a sufficient sample size on Montgomery for teams to evaluate. The 3.8 yards per carry he’s averaging this season is a hair below the 3.9 he averaged over his first three.

The upside for Montgomery is that there’s still time to make his case for a contract. A lot can change in seven games, and the Bears seem inclined to remain reliant on the run. If he averages 81 per game the rest of the way — an ambitious-but-possible goal — he will have his second 1,000-yard season.

If he’s bulldozing defenses, the Bears will keep the ball in his hands. This should be the best chance he’s ever had to show what he can do.

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The two stars for this review of “Elf — The Musical” have almost nothing to do with the script, score or design of this stage musical about a human raised as an elf by Santa.

They are instead allotted to the Drury Lane Theatre cast’s valiant delivery of material that is unoriginal, underwhelming and a cheap, platitudinous attempt to cash in on holiday cliches, all while purporting to gin up the true spirit of Christmas.

Inspired by the 2003 movie written by David Berenbaum, “Elf — The Musical,” helmed by director/choreographer Lynne Kurdziel-Formato, follows the adventures of Buddy the titular elf (Ben Dow). Raised at the North Pole, Buddy figures out he’s human after realizing he’s much taller than his co-workers. He then travels from Santa’s land to New York City (upper Manhattan) to find his real father.

The movie is a 90-minute charmer. The musical (with a generic score by Matthew Skylar, a cheesier-than-a-pizzeria dumpster of a book by Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin, and lazy, banal lyrics by Chad Beguelin) is a bloated, two-and-a-half-hour slog that’s all sparkle and no substance.

At least, it would be all sparkle had Drury Lane decided to invest in an actual set (Kristen Martino, or more of the costumes (Rachel Boylan), some that appear to be a step above the remnants of a post-holiday, half-off craft store clearance bin.

After leaving Santa (A.D. Weaver) and arriving in New York, Buddy finds his father, the grinchly, Christmas-hating Walter Hobbs (Sean Fortunato) who is busy neglecting his ever-patient wife Emily (Melody Hobbs) and son Michael (Gabriel Solis opening night, Elliott Mayeda at some performances).

It falls to Buddy to teach all he encounters the true meaning of Christmas — which, in the genius lyrics of “Elf” is “Sparklejollytwinklejingley.” (Walter’s anti-sparkle skepticism is balm in a wasteland of glittery treacle.)

Dow’s Buddy is tireless as he plays a 30-year-old with the demeanor of a profoundly sheltered 6-year-old. In the movie, there’s a genuine warmth to that innocence. Here, it just seems contrived no matter how much spritely innocence Dow pours into the role.

There are two solid numbers, thankfully. The first is the Act 2 opener “Nobody Cares About Santa,” wherein a corps of jaded department store Santas sings of rotten kids and jaded adults. When the final Santa sashayed away, I yearned for an encore.

The second one follows immediately, when Buddy’s deeply underwritten non-elf girlfriend Jovie (Lydia Burke) unleashes her spectacular vocals with “Never Fall in Love (With an Elf).” Burke’s got a voice that reaches the sky and a presence like the sun. But, for all the song’s protestations, Jovie has little to do here but wait around for Buddy the man-child to engage with her.

The show’s dance corps also shines in a tap finale, but what could be a real whiz-bang eye-popper sinks due to under-population. The stage looks half-filled much of the time.

The set is a far cry from the richly detailed environments Drury Lane has created in the past. It’s essentially a series of big, blank, flat screens mounted upstage that host projections (by Anthony Churchill) that make 1969’s TV classic “Frosty the Snowman” look like a Pixar masterpiece.

Those screens purportedly show the iconic New York City locales where Buddy’s adventures take him: Central Park, the skating rink at Rockefeller Center, Tavern on the Green, Santa’s house at the Macy’s department store. (I visited Santa in the Manhattan Macy’s back in the day. This rendition of that magical place is as Malibu is to Malibu Barbie. The others are of a kind.)

“Elf — The Musical” purports to be about believing in Christmas like you did when you were a small child. But the story is like an empty gift box covered in cheap wrapping paper.

Not even Buddy’s near-miraculous, one-elf, two-bells bell concert can save this take on Christmas.

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Justin Fields’ running prowess is the talk of the NFL, and most of that conversation is about the unparalleled speed he brings to the quarterback position.

He’s outrunning cornerbacks like the Lions’ Jeff Okudah, a former No. 3 overall pick who surely thought his 4.4 speed would be sufficient for any situation. Fields has clocked the fastest speed of any quarterback this season, at 21.2 miles per hour and has a couple 60-yard touchdown runs.

But his one-yard touchdown for the Bears against the Lions might’ve been his most impressive play. Not only does Fields possess pure speed that scares every defense, but his elusiveness is rivaled only by Ravens star Lamar Jackson.

Fields ran 34 actual yards for that touchdown, and while social media is full of videos of him dancing, none of those moves are as artful and inimitable as what he did in the backfield. The pasodoble is easy by comparison.

When Fields dropped back, two defenders were closing within three yards and a third ran in as he rolled left, then cut back to the right. One lunged and actually had both arms wrapped around his legs for a moment, nearly pulling him to the ground for an eight-yard sack, but he turned hard to the left and shook him.

Even then, he still had a defender in pursuit behind him and another approaching ahead. That’s when the speed kicked in. Fields hit the gas, survived two defenders hitting him at the goal line and plowed into the end zone.

It’s not normal.

Fields has still been sacked more times (36) than anyone in the NFL, but things look much different than they did in his starting debut as a rookie when the Browns flattened him nine times.

It helps that Fields is no longer being told to win from the pocket and is now in an offense that allows him to play freely. But he also has gotten more savvy during the chaos that transpires in the small, crowded space of the backfield. He has natural athleticism, but there’s also a mental component to being an elite escape artist.

“Your eyes are always downfield, so you’re learning to develop a feel for the tempo of the rush,” Bears quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko said. “It just comes down to the functional intelligence to react in that moment.”

And there’s a lot to decipher in a very short time.

Defensive end Trevis Gipson described that challenge, which he’ll face in Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota when the Bears visit Atlanta, as “a lot of commotion,” and whoever processes the frenzy first usually wins those battles. Defenders are often within arm’s reach of Fields, but one quick step is all he needs to escape through the B-gap between the guard and tackle.

“Honestly, it’s pretty challenging,” Gipson said. “When you’ve got a mobile quarterback that’s moving around, you’re hoping your teammates can keep him boxed in and you all can play off each other. You hope there’s no gaps for escaping.”

When asked which quarterback has been the most problematic for him in that regard, Gipson said Fields. When pressed to pick someone whom he has actually faced in a game, he said there really isn’t anyone on Fields’ level.

Again, his mind is a big part of that. Bears defensive tackle Justin Jones said the goal is to make mobile quarterbacks “play with a panic,” but does Fields ever seem panicked? He looks like he’s performing a dance he knows by heart.

“You think you have him… and he just outruns [you],” Dolphins linebacker Jerome Baker said. “He gets out of a sack that’s clearly a sack.”

That’s invaluable amid ongoing renovations to the offensive line. Fields has faced pressure on 28.1% of his drop backs, third-highest in the NFL, but been sacked on fewer than half of those plays. He’s turning nothing into something.

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