We stand 4 days from MLB’s 2024 commerce deadline. Formally, offers must be accomplished by 5 p.m. CT on Tuesday, July 30, although we’ll definitely hear information of some dribble out for an hour or so after that.
Two offers have been accomplished as of this writing: The Marlins despatched reliever A.J. Puk to the Diamondbacks for a pair of minor leaguers, and the Rays traded Randy Arozarena to the Mariners for a few prospects and a PTBNL. As lately as a 12 months in the past the latter deal would have been big information, however Arozarena’s not having an excellent 12 months, although he’s been hitting higher these days.
Between now and Tuesday you’re prone to hear many commerce rumors. Consider me after I let you know that 95 p.c of these are a giant pile of nothing. They’re both planted by writers who need clicks and had been fed data by entrance places of work who may or may not be deceptive them, or by others who suppose, “Nicely, this group actually SHOULD commerce this man,” even when that’s not a sensible factor.
As I’ve beforehand mentioned, I’m sort of agnostic concerning the Cubs at this 12 months’s deadline. Jed Hoyer’s already mentioned he’s not going so as to add any rental-type gamers, and with the group starting Friday’s motion 5½ video games behind the final wild-card spot, that’s most likely the precise factor to do. Even when the Cubs win their subsequent 4 video games and transfer nearer to that final postseason berth, including such a participant at a price of prospects isn’t prone to occur.
So the query turns into: Which gamers can be helpful to subtract from this roster, provided that Hoyer has additionally mentioned he intends to contend in 2025?
In my opinion, that’s not guys like Jameson Taillon or Nico Hoerner. Are they superstars? No, however each may help a group as strong performers.
Extra probably, the way in which I see it, is that the Cubs may deal a number of the relievers they’ve who might be pretty simply changed earlier than subsequent 12 months. Amongst these: Hector Neris, Drew Smyly and Mark Leiter Jr. All three have some worth (even when Neris has given us all coronary heart failure in lots of ninth innings), and buying and selling Neris has the additional advantage of eradicating his possibility 12 months from subsequent 12 months’s payroll. Additional, the Cubs have major-league relievers about prepared to come back off rehab assignments (Caleb Kilian, Adbert Alzolay and Keegan Thompson) so they may substitute any traded members of the bullpen pretty simply.
Primarily, I’m posting this text for commerce dialogue functions. In the long run I feel the Cubs make a minor commerce or two earlier than Tuesday, nothing extra. Could possibly be fallacious, I suppose, however that’s the way in which I see it.
Have at it.