The Chicago Cubs are actively open for business, team president Jed Hoyer said so Tuesday before the Cubs opened a three-game homestand vs. Cleveland.
Hoyer mentioned the talks have been ongoing,
“We’ve had a lot of conversations with teams,” Hoyer told reporters on July 1. “We’ll continue to have a lot of conversations, but these things ramp up.”
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So, business isn’t exactly booming. Not at the moment, anyway.
But, what Hoyer said after might turn prophetic in a few weeks.
“A lot of things are going to change,” Hoyer said. “There are probably some teams that will sell that don’t expect to and vice versa. So, I don’t think the market is really defined yet.”
The Cubs might not have a massive overhaul, but the deadline still represents a key moment in this season. The Cubs need help on their pitching staff, and the trade deadline is the moment to acquire that help. The Cubs will need to fight off competition, though.
USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported he expects the Philadelphia Phillies, Seattle Mariners, Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres to be among the most aggressive teams at the trade deadline. Here’s what that could look like.
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What they’re saying
Right now, the consensus is that the Cubs need another reliable starter. Justin Steele would have been that third starter in this case, but he was lost for the year early in the 2025 season. It might be cheaper to nab a high-level reliever, but acquiring a starter might solve that problem, too.
The Cubs’ rotation currently includes Shota Imanaga, Matthew Boyd, Jameson Taillon, Cade Horton and Colin Rea. Acquiring a serviceable starter would mean someone like Rea could move to the bullpen.
One idea ESPN proposed was the Cubs trading with the Marlins for Sandy Alcantara.
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The Cubs have a line up in place to help Alcantara right away, with defensive-minded Nico Hoerner and Michael Busch up the middle at second and short, respectively. Plus, Alcantara, the 2022 Cy Young winner, has a 4-8 record with a 6.98 ERA. Perhaps a change of scenery would do him well. In Chicago, Alcantara would need to be the ace. That’s Imanaga. He would need to be No. 2 or No. 3 behind Imanaga and Matthew Boyd.
Dig deeper
More trade candidates to know for the Cubs are the Pirates’ Mitch Keller and Royals’ Seth Lugo, who could potentially become more available as the July 31 deadline inches closer.
A team to keep an eye on is the Arizona Diamondbacks, who sit in fourth place in the NL West and are currently .500 with a 43-43 record. If Arizona starts to slip in July, they’d be buried beneath the Giants, Padres and Dodgers.
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If Arizona slips, then Merrill Kelly would be a pitcher to keep in mind if the Diamondbacks decide to sell. He has a 7-4 record and a 3.55 ERA so far in 2025.
Currently, Kelly, Keller and Lugo’s trade profiles are just rumors. But it falls in line with what Hoyer said about the market and how it isn’t yet defined.
The other side
The other question to all this becomes what would the Cubs have to give up to acquire a starter?
Catcher/first baseman Moisés Ballesteros might be a player teams most would start with. Same goes for Cubs’ top prospect Owen Caissie.
James Triantos and Kevin Alcántara, two 22-year-old players at the AAA level could also be involved. The Cubs already sent 2025 first-round pick Cam Smith to the Astros for Kyle Tucker, which paid off as Tucker is an All-Star starter, which is also proof of the reward that comes with he risk of trading prospects for a starter.
