The Chicago Cubs lost Justin Steele to a season-ending elbow injury. Steele was the ace of the staff, so his absence will be a huge loss for Chicago. The team still has postseason ambitions, though, so they could scoure the trade market for another front-end starting pitcher. One option is the Miami Marlins' Sandy Alcantara.
The Marlins have blown things up and traded nearly everybody of note over the last couple of years. They haven't moved on from Alcantara yet because he was out for all of last season due to Tommy John surgery, although the trade stance remains a bit murky. The former Cy Young winner is back in the rotation and pitching at a high level, but his services aren't needed on a tanking/rebuilding team like the Marlins. So, what trade offer could the Cubs make for Alcantara?
Cubs trade proposal for Sandy Alcantara
Cubs receive: Sandy Alcantara
Marlins receive: Owen Caissie (Cubs No. 3 prospect, MLB No. 50), Jefferson Rojas (Cubs No. 7, MLB No. 93), Cristian Hernandez (Cubs No. 11), Jack Neely (Cubs No. 16)
The Cubs have already been linked to Alcantara. It is widely known that the Marlins will likely trade him at some point, and the Cubs are among the frontrunners to pursue him. However, recent reports suggest that Miami might wait to trade the pitcher until closer to the MLB trade deadline.
As of now, Alcantara is still working his way back into form after recovering from his UCL injury, but with time, he could return to an All-Star level. The hope is that his trade stock will skyrocket in time. After all, at his best, Alcantara is not only a Cy Young winner but a two-time All-Star and one of the best pitchers in baseball.
Through 15.1 innings pitched so far this season, Alcantara has a 4.70 ERA. Alcantara is one of the best flamethrowers in baseball, as his velocity oftentimes reaches triple digits. He'd be a perfect fit in Chicago, and the Cubs might have a better chance than most teams to trade for him sooner rather than later.
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That is because the Cubs have one of the best farm systems in MLB. Therefore, they have more/better prospects to dangle in front of the Marlins than most teams do. The Cubs have seven top 100 prospects, according to MLB.com. It would certainly take a couple of those youngsters to acquire Alcantara. Chicago's farm system is particularly deep with offensive players, so even after trading Owen Caissie, Jefferson Rojas, and Cristian Hernandez, the team would still have plenty of bats to reinforce the roster in future years.
Alcantara should be particularly enticing for the Cubs because he is under team control for multiple more seasons, so he wouldn't be just a rental. Because of that, Chicago should be okay departing with a big haul of prospects. The Cubs are in first place in the National League Central, so they should be looking to replace Steele as soon as possible in order to avoid falling down the standings.
Looking at the Marlins' rebuild
The Marlins are clearly rebuilding and stocking up on prospects. Because of that, they'd be smart to trade Alcantara, although they definitely want to maximize his trade value.
During last year's trade deadline, Miami shipped away Tanner Scott, arguably the top reliever on the trading block. Bryan Hoeing was also moved in that deal. Additionally, they sent out Huascar Brazoban, Bryan De La Cruz, JT Chargois, Josh Bell, and Trevor Rogers. Most notably, though, the team traded Jazz Chisholm Jr. to the New York Yankees.
Alcantara is next in line to be moved, and the Marlins could demand a bigger return for him than any of the aforementioned players. In this deal, Miami would add four legitimate building block pieces, some of which are close to the big leagues, and some of which still need a few years of development in the minors. Whether it happens soon or closer to the trade deadline, an Alcantara trade seems inevitable.
