Who would Chicago Cubs trade for Manny Machado?

Which Chicago Cubs are the most likely to get shipped out of town if Theo Epstein makes a move for slugging infielder Manny Machado?

First, a Sun-Times report from Gordon Wittenmyer back on May 8 suggested that the Chicago Cubs would throw their hats into the ring for Baltimore Orioles infielder Manny Machado at the trade deadline, a move that fans have had their eye on since the offseason.

Then, Fan Rag Sports writer Jon Heyman relayed word that Machado will be the Cubs’ top target in July as they aim to turn around a so-so start to the 2018 season.

Are the Cubs willing to get aggressive to help keep their championship window open a little while longer? It seems as if they’ll at least consider the possibility.

Truthfully, things have been building to this critical point since before the 2017 season even ended. The Orioles had talks with nine teams, including the Cubs and Chicago White Sox, about dealing Machado at the winter meetings. And with Baltimore now being the worst team in baseball, it’s a question of “when” and “who”, not “if”, with this impending deal.

But as some of our resident Cubs fans have pointed out, trading for Machado means sacrifices must be made.

With Machado approaching free agency, the Cubs would be hoping to sign him to an extension before he hits the market. Otherwise, they would risk losing him as a rental before the calendar year is up. And that extension wouldn’t come cheap; we could be talking eight years and about $300 million.

If that happens, kiss those Bryce Harper dreams goodbye.

And in a trade scenario, at least one of their young players will have to leave town. And Cubs fans always hate trading away young talent. That said, Machado’s only 25 himself, so it’s not as if they’re pulling a Kenny Williams here.

If the Chicago Cubs do trade for Machado, which players might they be most willing to part with? We take a look here.

P.S. I’m not including Jason Heyward in this because…duh. Of course the Cubs would love to move on from him. But unless he decides to opt out of his contract, good luck getting a team to take on the $100+ million Heyward still has left on his deal.