Chicago Cubs Rumors: A case for each trade deadline scenario
By Jason Parini
The Chicago Cubs could try to sell off some of their assets for the future.
Unfortunately for Cubs fans, selling off assets is looking more and more like the likely path. For the third straight year, Cubs fans will be on “hug watch” for the next week and a half.
But why exactly trade off assets for yet another year? Let’s break it down.
Pros: Let’s be honest. This team is not actually good yet. While they have some solid pieces, they’re still not a legitimate playoff contender and are still at least a year out from actually contending.
Top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong is currently in Double-A and will not see the big leagues until next season. Their bullpen has been atrocious, their infield depth is non-existing and former All-Stars Ian Happ and Dansby Swanson are both hitting below .260.
By selling this year, the Cubs can add some more pieces for the future by trading off All-Star quality pieces that very likely won’t be returning next season.
SP Marcus Stroman is the top trade piece. The 2023 All-Star has had an excellent season, posting a 10-7 record with a 3.09 ERA.
While he’s owed $21 million next season, he has a player opt-out and will likely use it to pursue free agency and possibly get a multi-year contract with a higher salary given the market for starting pitching.
Also available could be OF Cody Bellinger, who has had a stellar rebound season. He’s hit .310/.365/.522 and since June 24, he’s hit .434 with 10 XBH. He has a mutual option for 2024.
But with a strong season, Bellinger very well could opt for free agency and pursue a multi-year deal as well.
In short, selling now would bolster their farm system and give them more assets for the future without mortgaging future contention or significantly shaking up the current roster.
The last thing the team and fans would want is to go for it now, give up too many assets, and then be stuck in purgatory in future seasons.
Cons: Another year of “hug watch”, selling off players, and likely a brutal August and September without the team’s No. 2 starter and their hottest hitter. It’s also not guaranteed that Stroman and Bellinger would hit free agency (although it’s probable).
While the team could opt to re-sign the two if they do hit free agency, the odds become stacked against them as players typically don’t come running back to the team that traded them.
It’s also disappointing that the Cubs aren’t a better team this year in a season where the NL Central is such a weak division. Heading into the All-Star Break, the first-place Reds were just nine games above .500.
It’s still not impossible for the team to add some solid pieces at the deadline and make a run at the division or wild card but selling at the deadline would obviously put a hold on any chances of that happening.