The Chicago Cubs are very threatening to have their worst regular season finish yet in a decade and there are some compelling All-Star talents that are said to abound on the commercial market.
Catcher Willson Contreras got his third All-Star team (all in the last four years) this year, and quarterback Ian Happ has just been named the first Midsummer Classic of his career. According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, both players could be transferred before the trade deadline next week.
“The question of the Chicago Cubs catcher is not whether he will be traded – it is inevitable. It is whether his new team will keep him in the position he has been in. play more than 90% of your games or not. Passan wrote. “Many teams, sources said, are worried about Contreras – who are not known for his game acumen – being linked up with a new pitching staff member. , but the New York Mets and Houston Astros have been linked. contact the Cubs about the soon-to-be 30-year-old free agent, sources said, and the San Francisco Giants are also looking for capture options. play catcher rather than buy him as a main backer.”
Contreras is currently showing a career-high (and best) percentage-based percentage of .374, while also leading the Cubs in runs scored (50) and OPS (.847). Happ entered Tuesday with a top 95 teamfight, 24 doubles (career highest) and a base 150 total, and played in 94 top team games.
“Two things have become clear over the past week as the trade talks unfold: Almost everyone wants Happ and the Cubs will probably trade with him,” Passan wrote. “It makes sense. Happ, who turns 28 next month, is in the middle of the All-Star season. He’s an attacking player who, after years of turning, is better off on the crushing left wing. Crushing left-handed pitchers this season, he’s a good average defender on the left-court, and he won’t reach his freestyle until after the 2023 season.”
The MLB transaction deadline is August 2.
