The Chicago Cubs' trade deadline is off to a strong start, with the club executing their second deal of the season. This deal is definitely bigger in scope than the first, as the team acquired Tampa Bay Rays All-Star third baseman Isaac Paredes for utility man Christopher Morel and two prospects. Now, it seems as if the team are in the hunt for San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Blake Snell, last year's NL Cy Young Award winner.
“Cubs are one of the 6 or so teams to check in on Blake Snell, too, so they seem to be out of sell mode,” said the NY Post's Jon Heyman via X, formerly Twitter. “Still iffy as to whether Snell goes anywhere, though his name is clearly out there.”
This solidifies that the Cubs are aiming for a return to the postseason despite a rocky first half in manager Craig Counsell's inaugural season. After all, the team only missed the postseason by one game last year. The team that got that third wild card? The Arizona Diamondbacks, who made it all the way to the World Series before falling to the Texas Rangers.
Can Cubs trade deadline continue steam with Blake Snell pickup?
Despite being five and a half games out of the last wild card spot at the moment, the Cubs still have about 55 games left in the regular season. With that gap, they have the opportunity to make it up should they be able to string more wins together. The NL's top three teams are very strong, but the rest of the field is very manageable. If they get hot and add the right pieces, like Paredes, then a deep postseason run is possible.
Starting pitching is definitely an area that they would want to address. The top two starters of Justin Steele and Shota Imanaga are solid, but both will likely come close to hitting their innings thresholds for the year. To address this, adding someone like Snell would make a lot of sense. Furthermore, this would be a show of good faith from GM Jed Hoyer that the front office believes in Counsell. This would likely elicit a cathartic reaction from the manager and help further motivate his team after his former front office in Milwaukee didn't back him during the summer of 2022.
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Paredes gives Cubs more power, defense in midst of trade deadline
In giving up Morel, the Cubs front office led by Hoyer knows they lost a solid talent. However, Morel's .199 batting average and average of around one strikeout per game shows a flawed approach. Those negatives are almost outweighed by the positives, which include a team leading 18 home runs and 51 RBIs, a mark that is second on the squad to left fielder Ian Happ.
The upgrade that Paredes is totally worth it though. He's an excellent all-around defender at multiple positions, including both corner infield spots. Offensively, he's a much more rounded talent, including a focus on all offensive aspects. That blend of tools and sound defensive play will serve the North Siders well in their pursuit of another World Series title.
