Chicago Cubs Rumors: Willson Contreras might be gone soon
The Chicago Cubs might be willing to trade Willson Contreras in the near future.
It has been a tough offseason for Chicago Cubs fans. They have lost Kyle Schwarber, Jon Lester, and even their broadcaster Len Kasper. Things are looking bad for them as they appear to be a team that is shedding salary. They probably shouldn’t be doing that right now but it is what it is at this point. Things got even worse when they let Yu Darvish go in a trade to the San Diego Padres for a very underwhelming return.
Unfortunately for the Cubs fans, it doesn’t look like they are done letting go of elite players. Willson Contreras, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, is being “shopped extensively” by the Chicago Cubs. Nightengale’s report may or may not come true but he did have the Chicago White Sox new manager pegged as Tony La Russa weeks in advance.
This is bad news for the Cubs. Victor Caratini also went back to the Padres in the Darvish trade so trading Contreras somewhere would leave them pretty bare at the catcher position. It also weakens their starting lineup a lot because he has consistently been one of their best hitters since coming into the league.
In addition to what the loss means on the field, it says a lot about the organization as well. Getting rid of Contreras, Darvish, and Caratini tells the baseball world that they are in a full rebuild mode. They might sign Javier Baez and Anthony Rizzo to extensions to keep fans interested in the team but the rest of the roster seems to be fair game.
What type of team would be interested in a player like Willson Contreras? Well, the answer should be most teams because he is one of the five or six best catchers in all of baseball. Any team that is looking to add someone to be the starting catcher should be on the phone with the Cubs every day, especially if they are a World Series contender.
The Chicago #Cubs, after trading Yu Darvish and non-tendering Kyle Schwarber, are now extensively shopping catcher Willson Contreras. Contreras is projected to earn at least $5 million and perhaps as much as $7.4 million in salary arbitration, per @mlbtraderumors
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 29, 2020
Hot. What would the perfect 2021 Chicago Cubs lineup look like?. light
The Cubs’ days of being one of the best teams in the league are long gone. It is sad because the rest of the National League Central isn’t really that good. It feels like a division that could potentially be won by a team with 85-90 wins. The Cubs could get themselves in that range still but it depends how many players they sell-off. Contreras has been a great player for the Chicago Cubs so if he is gone anytime soon, it will be tough to see for sure.