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Five remaining trade targets for the Chicago Cubs

By Dan Schmelzer

DETROIT, MI - JUNE 07: Alex Avila #31 of the Detroit Tigers hits a single in the first inning during a MLB game against the Los Angeles Angels at Comerica Park on June 7, 2017 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Dave Reginek/Getty Images)
DETROIT, MI - JUNE 07: Alex Avila #31 of the Detroit Tigers hits a single in the first inning during a MLB game against the Los Angeles Angels at Comerica Park on June 7, 2017 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Dave Reginek/Getty Images) /
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Brandon Maurer San Diego Padres
SAN DIEGO, CA – APRIL 19: Brandon Maurer #37 of the San Diego Padres celebrates after getting the final out during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at PETCO Park on April 18, 2017 in San Diego, California. The Padres won 1-0. (Photo by Denis Poroy/Getty Images) /

4. Brandon Maurer, RP, San Diego Padres

On the surface, this one may seem a bit odd. Why would the Chicago Cubs want to trade for a relief pitcher on a bad team with a 5.30 ERA? The traditional numbers do not look great for San Diego Padres reliever Brandon Maurer, but if you take a deeper look, some turnaround should be expected.

Maurer’s ERA is ugly. There is no denying that. However, his 2.84 FIP suggests that he has been killed by the Padres defense this season. Maurer has been a much-better pitcher than his ERA suggests and he would likely get a major boost in production with a strong defense behind him.

Maurer is getting ground balls at a solid rate (43.8%, according to FanGraphs), is striking out a fair amount of batters (24.5% strikeout rate) and is not walking anybody (4.6% walk rate). He is not an elite bullpen arm, but Maurer is undoubtedly better than his immediate number imply.

The Padres are not going anywhere and would likely listen on a deal for any player on their roster, especially a guy like Maurer. The cost to acquire him would not likely be much and Maurer is a guy who could really help them in the bullpen.

The Chicago Cubs have a nice duo in the back of their ‘pen. Wade Davis and Carl Edwards have been lights out. However, they could certainly use some help in middle relief and that is where Maurer would come in. In the postseason, having as many reliable bullpen arms as possible is extremely important. With a better defense behind him, Maurer could become just that with the Cubs.

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