Chicago Cubs Rumors: What will become of Cubs’ 2018 acquisitions?

The Chicago Cubs acquired three players around the 2018 trade deadline to help them down the stretch. There’s a chance none of them will be back in 2019.

The Chicago Cubs were hoping to charge into the 2018 MLB Playoffs as champions of the NL Central looking to make it back to the World Series. Even though the Cubs made a push to acquire new talent around the trade deadline, things fell apart for the team at the worst time possible.

The Cubs blew a small division lead to the Milwaukee Brewers in September, and had to settle the score with them in a one-game playoff at the end of the season. In that game, the Cubs offense was again cold as ice and they lost the game 3-1. This forced the Cubs into the Wild Card slot.

In the NL Wild Card Game, the Cubs faced off against the Colorado Rockies. Once again, the offense was almost non-existent and the team lost 2-1 in extra innings. It was an extremely bitter feeling to watch two teams celebrate wins over the Cubs at Wrigley Field on consecutive days.

The Cubs quickly made a change by firing hitting coach Chili Davis. In addition, President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein didn’t mince words about the team’s offseason plans to make changes if necessary (Via NBC Sports Chicago):

"I’ve never been part of something like this offensively and I never want to be again. We have to be an offensive force. We should be with the talent on our roster, but it’s probably time to stop evaluating this in terms of talent and start evaluating in terms of production. We need to do everything we can to produce offensively."

The Cubs made moves around the deadline to fortify their lineup, pitching rotation and bullpen. Three important players the Cubs acquired in 2018 could all be gone in 2019. Here’s a look at what could become of these key additions.