Cubs: 3 trade packages involving Willson Contreras

1. Houston Astros

The Astros figure to be a prime candidate to make a move for a catcher still in their prime. Last season, the American League Champions got by in large part with the pair of former Cubs, Robinson Chirinos and Martin Maldonado. With both players now free agents, it’s unlikely that either one of them returns next year given that they are 36 and 33-years-old, respectively.

Korey Lee is slotted to be the catcher of the future and was selected with the final pick of the first round of June’s draft. But he isn’t projected to be ready until 2022. The 21-year-old finished out the year in Class A Short Season Tri-City and slashed 0.268/0.359/0.371 with 3 home runs and 28 RBI in 64 games. The Astros may not be able to wait on Lee as they are currently still within their contention window.

Their roster is loaded and Contreras would only make them better on offense and defense. The Cubs badly need pitching as Jon Lester and Jose Quintana are both off the books after the 2020 season and should start the conversation with Forrest Whitley. The 22-year-old appears to be ready for the big leagues and could easily slide into the fifth starter spot in the rotation next year.

Whitley is ranked as the 16th best prospect in baseball and he throws gas to go along with an above-average curveball and slider. He pitched across four-levels of minor league baseball this year but didn’t have the best go of it in Double-A or Triple-A. Walks got the best of him this year but he put in a strong showing in the Arizona Fall League, striking out 32 batters in 25.0 innings of work with a 2.88 ERA and allowed just 9 free passes.

I also have the Cubs landing a utility man in Aledmys Diaz. If you recall, Diaz came up through the Cardinals farm system and earned an All-Star selection in his rookie year in 2016. He did a little bit of everything for the Astros last year but slashed 0.271/0.356/0.467 with 12 doubles, 1 triple, 9 home runs, and 40 RBI in 69 games. He’s an above-average contact hitter, which is something the Cubs desperately need and is under team control through the 2022 season.

Diaz had a perfect fielding percentage at second base last season in 151.2 innings but if the Cubs want Nico Hoerner to play second base, Diaz also has some experience (albeit not much) playing in the outfield. So options are available for him to get playing time. His 2020 projections have him slashing 0.260/0.318/0.449 with 19 doubles, 1 triple, 14 home runs, and 45 RBI.