Who would Chicago Cubs trade for Manny Machado?
Ian Happ/Kyle Schwarber
These two guys don’t escape from this trade discussion either. That said, these would be the less likely of the glut of young players they have to be moved because of their power potential.
Yes, Happ has been bad this season. We know. It’s pretty hard to miss his .231 average, rough .301 OBP and 50 strikeouts. If he can’t hit the ball, it makes him awfully hard to play when Almora and Ben Zobrist are playing the way they are right now.
But it’s hard to just forget about the 24 home runs and 68 RBIs he put up last year along with a slash of .253/.328/.842. You knew he was going to strike out (129 Ks in 2017) and that the league would adjust to him, so perhaps this isn’t wholly unforeseen. But the production and versatility he showed last year could make it hard to move on from him.
As much as we love Almora, he’s probably not going to hit 20+ home runs or rack up RBIs. And that protects Happ, even with the strikeouts. The Cubs probably hope he can still turn that around at age 23.
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On the flip side, though Schwarber has largely rebounded from a difficult time last year, now hitting .241/.362/.836, he’s been mired in a mini-rut of his own of late. He currently has one hit in his last 16 at-bats and struck out five times in his last two games. Right now, he sits at seven home runs and 17 RBIs: solid, but not quite what you’d hope.
There’s always going to be that talk about Schwarber fitting best in the American League, which isn’t wrong. Playing defense just isn’t really for him, if we’re being completely honest.
But the Chicago Cubs have had opportunity after opportunity to explore trade options with him, and they continually refuse. Why would they do it now, even for a chance to add Machado? If anything, the Cubs probably want to keep Schwarber around for that, which would send their power (on paper) through the roof.
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The Cubs definitely have players they can sacrifice to deal for Machado, but I’m not sure Happ or Schwarber will be high on that list. Could that stymie negotiations? Maybe. I’d have a hard time believing Baltimore won’t ask about them.
As the calendar ticks toward July, we’ll see how the market for Manny Machado develops and how these players perform. Whatever happens, look for the Chicago Cubs to make a strong play when the time comes.