According to a report from baseball insider Ken Rosenthal, the Cubs would be willing to trade a young bat if it means getting starting pitching in return.
Rosenthal specifically mentioned outfielder Jorge Soler and infielder Javier Baez as the Cubs most likely to be traded.
Via Fox Sports:
Moving one of those hitters only would make sense if the return was a pitcher of similar age, service and talent. The risk for the Cubs in addressing their pitching needs solely through the free-agent market is that they could end up with an old rotation quickly.
The Cubs are also open to trading infielder Starlin Castro, Rosenthal said, though the return wouldn’t be on par with that of either Soler or Baez.
Soler batted .262 with 10 home runs in 101 games with Chicago this season. He was incredible during the postseason, as he batted .474 with three home runs and five RBI.
Baez played just 28 regular-season games with the Cubs, batting .289 with one home run. He, too, excelled during the postseason, posting a .333 average in 15 at-bats.
Rosenthal added that Chicago does not intend to move third baseman Kris Bryant, shortstop Addison Russell or left fielder Kyle Schwarber.
24 of the best photos from the Cubs’ postseason
All stats via ESPN.
[FBTW]
