New Cubs third baseman Alex Bregman extended his arm through the blue-pinstriped jersey that bore the Cubs logo on its front and a No. 3 on its back.
Cameras clicked around the new conference room at the team’s offices across from Wrigley Field, capturing the first images of Bregman in a Cubs jersey since agreeing to a five-year contract over the weekend.
“I wore number three because I wanted a third championship,” Bregman said during his introductory press conference on Thursday.
Bregman’s two World Series Championships were with the Astros, in 2017 – when the team was embroiled in a sign-stealing scandal – and 2022.
He’s worn No. 2 his whole career, including a one-season stop in Boston last year. But Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner already had No. 2, and Bregman said he didn’t ask him to give it up.
“I’ve heard he’s amazing,” Bregman said of Hoerner. “All the guys love him. Student of the game, plays hard, shows up ready to play every single day, a guy that wants to win really badly. And looking forward to being his teammate.”
Bregman’s five-year, $175 million deal puts him squarely in the Cubs’ long-term plans after breaking their four-year playoff drought last season.
“Anyone who’s spent time around our office, around me, knows that this is a player that I’ve coveted for a long time, that our department has coveted for a long time,” president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said. “I couldn’t be happier to bring Alex to Chicago, to this great fan base, to Wrigley, and couldn’t be more excited to put this uniform on Alex.”