Though the Cubs added Rafael Soriano on a minor league pact earlier today, the team remains on the lookout for relief help “via the right trade,” reports Bruce Levine of 670 The Score (Twitter link).
The Cubs are currently utilizing a mix of Hector Rondon, Pedro Strop, Justin Grimm, Jason Motte, Edwin Jackson, James Russell, Zac Rosscup and Travis Wood in the ’pen. To date, Chicago relievers have combined for a 3.68 ERA that ranks 20th in the Majors, though the eventual return of Neil Ramirez and the addition of Soriano could improve those results.
Additionally, Rondon appears to have lost the confidence of manager Joe Maddon recently. The 27-year-old began the season as the team’s closer after performing well in that role in 2014, but he was lifted from his June 6 outing after facing just one batter — a leadoff walk to Anthony Rendon — and he worked in a setup capacity the following night, with Motte earning the save.
The Cubs figure to be one of many teams hunting for bullpen help over the course of the summer, and they’re at least the third team to reportedly be seeking trades for relievers in the past week alone. Yankees GM Brian Cashman recently stated that he “needs” to find a right-handed reliever for his bullpen, and the Braves are also interested in bulking up in the ’pen, though for now they’ll hope that the addition of righty David Aardsma can help to solidify things.
The Cubs could take a look at righty David Carpenter, who was designated for assignment by the Yankees last week. Carpenter’s struggled in 2015 but maintained strong velocity and was excellent for the 2013-14 Braves. The Marlins are one team that has been recently linked to Carpenter. Other than Carpenter, however, there aren’t many relief options in DFA limbo.
Looking elsewhere, Milwaukee and Philadelphia are the most commonly cited potential sellers, and each has high-priced assets that would be appealing to shed for a rebuilding club (e.g. Jonathan Papelbon, Jonathan Broxton and, perhaps, Francisco Rodriguez). With Cincinnati continuing to slip in the division — they’re currently 12 back from first place — one could envision the Reds becoming sellers as well. Of course, Cincinnati’s bullpen is a large reason for the club’s struggles (though Aroldis Chapman would be an intriguing trade candidate if made available), and trades with either the Reds or Brewers could be complicated if any of the three teams are reluctant to make an intra-division swap.
Carpenter for Castro, go! (turns on PS4…)
a: overpay on the cubs part. b: can be had for free when refuses assignment.
Sarcasm meter broken? Also, I doubt he doesn’t get traded at some capacity before that point.
Maybe he is being sarcastic too, lol.
surely you cant be serious
About Carpenter being traded?(P.S if this is sarcasm, it’s okay to tell me)
please don’t call him SHIRLEY! 🙂
Wooosh…
im am serious and stop calling me shirley
As long as Baez is not ready to come up, the Cubs aren’t moving a 3 time all star. What is with the Castro hate? He is playing well under Maddon!
#axeEJAX
Sure Chapman would be intriguing, but I don’t think he is the same pitcher as he once was.
WHAT? Why? He clearly is his save numbers are down due to the Reds suck.
What do the Reds not being a very good team and Chapman’s confidence and his control/location have to do with one another?
Right on! You have to be in a save situation to get saves.
They’d want too much for Chapman…
I’m not giving Schwarber for 2 years of a RP.
Maybe give up some mid-level high upside guys, like Almora or Pierce Johnson, but I’m sure the Reds want Baez, Russell, or Schwarber type players, and that’s not happening.
You are right. I would say Alcantara, Baez, and Almora, with some low A prospect pitching.
What are you talking about. He dropped 103mph on the Cubs Friday night. His slowest was 99mph. I guess he’s lost some velocity. Greg Maddox pitched no faster than 92-93 and was often around 89-91 and through a ball with a ton of movement, striking out players left and right. You have to be kidding man!
Anyone think a 35% probability of an intra-division swap is too high? too low?
I’d say about right- though they typically take place in offseason when they do happen–ala Shawn Marshall for T Wood and spare tires….only midsason intra-division trade I can think of was the cubbies/pirates back in 03 w Randal Simon, Aramis Ramirez and Kenny Logton coming are way following the Corey Patterson injury–
Randall Simon wasn’t part of that trade – Separate transaction.
I couldn’t remember that of not–I remember bringing Simon over around same time–right on for the correction
Simon was a great addition in ’03, brought a hot bat with him. Inexplicably, Dusty stopped playing him in the postseason. Dusty was overrated. If he goes out to calm Prior and the infield and restore some confidence after the Bartman incident, perhaps the Cubs survive that game. Not a leader. He lost control of the ’04 team when Kent Mercker and others called out Steve Stone for being critical on telecasts down the stretch. Dusty was silent and didn’t hold his players accountable for blowing a sure wild-card spot the last week of the season, losing 5 of 6 at home. Dusty was a players’ manager – which means he didn’t discipline them – and you could count on him blowing a post-season series or a key series down the stretch. In ’02, Dusty’s Giants blew a 3-2 lead in games in the World Series AND a 5-0 7th inning lead in Game 6 to lose in 7 games. I told family in California then to please keep him out there – we don’t need him. BTW – His Reds lost a Division Series to the Giants just a couple years ago in 5 games after leading 2-0 in games AND coming home for the next 3 games! That was Dusty’s last year there – Reds’ management saw the light.
Rondon wasn’t THAT bad
He was. He led the league in 2 strike 2 out blown saves by a wide margin.
His numbers say otherwise.
The numbers say that he led the league in 2 strike 2 out blown saves by a wide margin.
LOL! There’s a small sample size if I ever heard one. He has 3 blown saves.
I mean dating back to 2014 when he assumed the closer’s role.
Still a very small sample, and very specific circumstance.
A specific circumstance for which a closer is used.
At least he’s not as bad as Carlos marmol
Marmol had a way longer leash as well.
Marmol was filthy.
What ever, the CUBS won’t trade CASTRO because he “WAS” an all-star. J.D. keeps reminding us.
Who said anything about trading Castro? What does Castro have to do with my comment?
Cubs: Relief Help Needed. Not Willing To Give Up Anything For It. *crickets*
As a Cubs’ fan, I’ve been waiting til next year all my life. 1 more year isn’t too much longer. They’ll get another ace like David Price or Jordan Zimmerman, and shore up the bullpen this offseason too. No need to sell the farm in 2015. The future is very bright.
My grandmother was born the day after the Cubs won the world series in 1908. She lived to be 97, a Cubs fan her whole life, never saw them win the world series. I’m going to be 52 in 6 weeks. I feel they will win it in the next 3 years and maybe back to back.
CJ Edwards is also a possibility down in AAA, Corey Black was moved to the pen in AA too, add in Neil Ramirez and Soriano coming in soon, the trade deadline 7 weeks away, the Cubs should only be looking to trade under the right circumstances right now, no rush.
Neftali Feliz for Kris Bryant. Do it!
I think you need to go back to the rehab center you escaped from… You need to sober up.
You need rehab son.
Reds fans or anyone really..What, in your opinion, gets Chapman? A top 100 prospect + another top 150 and maybe another good low A ball prospect?
That would be pretty close to fair I think. I’m thinking more a top 50 prospect though as the centerpiece rather than top 100.
Yeah, that is what I’m thinking too based on the Miller trade last year.
So something like…CJ Edwards, Dan Vogelbach and a random decent upside A baller?
Seems good to me.
If that is what it took I do that deal in a heartbeat. I don’t thinj Vog has a spot and see Edwards as a back of the rotation guy
While that would probably be fair, I don’t think Vogelbach would help the Reds. The Reds have a pretty good first baseman for the next few years, and Vogelbach is not an outfielder.
I think the A’s and Cubs match up well here. The Cubs need another outfielder and a reliever, and the A’s have both Clippard and Zobrist they can offer up and the Cubs have prospects which the A’s are probably looking for at this point. Ithink Baez and Schwarber for Clip and Zobrist would be a good deal, maybe the A’s throw in a prospect as well.
You are about to get torn to shreds by Cubs fans who overvalue Schwarber a bit too much 🙁
I don’t think you have to be a Cubs fan to see how lopsided that trade proposal is.
True. I am curious as to what Schwarber’s value is, seeing how terrible he is at catching. Projecting him as a big leaguer is tough, because he’s kind of positionless right now. The bat looks golden, and I’m also curious as to why he hasn’t been bumped to AAA yet as well – the Astros let Correa go up there for a bit and Schwarber + Correa’s AA numbers are very similar thus far.
Have you listened to Hoyer talk about his performance behind the plate this season lately? Or do you just post to hear your thoughts rattle?
He’s a top 15 prospect on his bat alone–he gunned down Byron Buxton just the other night and hasn’t had an error behind the plate in over a month–“terrible” is a pretty poor choice of words–he is still a work in progress–and no, it’s not over-valuing–it’s common sense–Baez and Schwarber are two top-15 prospects (if baez were still eligible for lists) that is being proposed for 2 rental players, one in his mid 30’s…you’ve made insane comps with zero numbers to support your position and when presented with numbers, have not responded with any numbers to support…Schwarber literally has the best approach in the minors which includes a 20% WALK RATE and 13 homeruns–you really cannot overvalue that kind of bat in today’s baseball whih just saw 100 million dollar deals handed out to players who have only once hit more than 30 hrs on a season and have a career avg of .260ish w OBP ~.320-.330(Kyle Seager)–not to mention controllavle through 2021…simply put–trading him for anything less than a controllable top of rotation starter is irresponsible and would never happen–and if Cubs feel he can stick at Catcher–then he doesn’t even go for that
He threw out Buxton the other day… Don’t give up on him catching anytime soon…
Cubs fans overvalue him. The organization had began to undervalue him as a future catcher, until they had a chance to see him perform after he settled in with the team. He has made some put outs from behind the dish that has the Cubs second guessing their idea to make him a corner outfielder, plus they’ve said that he’s developed a great repertoire with the pitching staff.
Schwarber AND Baez for Zobrist and Clippard? Maybe for Sonny Gray.
Its been talked about on here already, but Gray for Russell, Schwarber & Baez might actually get done. Gray is the most valuable singular player in the game behind Harper. Young, cost-controlled and perennial Cy Young contender who’s played his best games in the playoffs and in the must-win final game of last year.
Yeah I agree that’s why so many Cubs fans including myself want him. Unfortunately Theo says Russell is untouchable and he is probably the best centerpiece for a Gray deal. Maybe something like Schwarber, Baez and Edwards. A top 20 prospect, a former top 10 prospect who was having a nice turn around at AAA before he got hurt and another top 40-60 prospect in Edwards.
For Gray? That’s way, way too light. Gray brings in the top 2 prospects from any team, plus two or three more, think Dan Haren to AZ deal. I mean Theo says Russell is untouchable but no one is truly untouchable, I’m sure if Gray was actually on the table Addison would be back in Oakland.
I’d throw in Soler and Almora too honestly. I don’t think Theo wants to trade Russell and certainly not Bryant. I mean if it was up to me Russell + whoever else would be on a plane to Oakland for Gray right now. Realistically I’d think Russell, Edwards, Baez & Almora or something like that. I’d be hesitant to give Schwarber & Russell in the same deal.
Yeah that’s about right, I mean if Theo say no Russell then Billy could just go to LA and ask them for Seager+++ and they’d probably do that in a heartbeat. I don’t know why the Cubs insist on making a great SS into a 2B, that’s frustrating from an A’s fan perspective seeing how he’s 1000x the defensive SS Semien is.
Considering how poor Lester has been thus far I’d LOVE to get Gray. But I just can’t see Theo trading Russell even for a legit cost controlled ace on Gray. Much better than giving up Schwarber & Edwards for an aging Hamels AND his 90+ mil left on his contract.
The top 2 prospects from any team?
So, a team that has no top 50 prospects can be compared to the Cubs’ having 4 players (Bryant, Russell, Schwarber, and Baez) all having top 10 or 15 rankings…
I’m not trading 2 of those guys for a SP. Injuries happen too often. I’ll spend money on David Price and keep my prospects thank you very much.
He may be worth a team’s top 2 prospects, but no team will pay that price.
Everybody on this thread is high. That’s all.
agreed. in what world does theo give addison russell back to oakland? oh thats right there is no world. addison russell is 21 years old and the #5 prospect in baseball and looks pretty comfortable in the big leagues and he’s only going to get better.. you’re going to see this kid in the cubs lineup for YEARS to come and you won’t think twice about having sonny gray instead of him.. not because sonny gray won’t be a star but because addison russell will be. I’m not sitting here right now saying “oh man, i wish we traded rizzo for david price”.
Also why would billy beane trade sonny gray? to get a few guys who could potentially be as valuable as him? nah. thats not smart people. Scott Kazmir, Tyler Clippard, and Ben Zobrist are the trade chips.. because they are valuable enough to get a descent return.. and giving them up doesn’t set your rebuild back to the beginning like…. trading sonny gray would.
These folks are borderline crazy–Baez was hitting .310-.320ish/.380ish/.530ish/.920ish before injury–he plays ss–not sure who watched the draft but shortstops went 1-3…here’s a spoiler alert…2 of them are ALREADY OLDER THAN BAEZ and have et to play an inning in AA…these guys are hilarious–if Baez is te centerpiece for a guy like Gray then the next guys are Vogs, Almora, Edwards and MAYBE underwood–and Beane takes that in a second—maybe some of these guys have missed the trends—Rays got nothing near that type of deal for Price, why? Bc everyone knew Rays couldn’t afford him in arbitration-Rays had less leverage–as do A’s, controllable hitters are now a better asset than controllable pitchers…hands down…not even close…hitters are now the commodity–not pitchers…gray would never bet russell, Schwarber and Baez…unless the Tribune bought the Cubs back….he would net EITHER Baez or Schwarbs(probably not even Schwarbs) as a centerpiece around McKiney, Vogs, Edwards and an underwood type(low minors, high cieling) expecting anything more than that is ludicrous
Baez was on pace to strike out 300 times a year at the MLB level though. He’s not that strong a chip.
Baez reached the majors before his 21st birthday—he’s younger than half of the 1st rd picks and had his K rate under 24 and walk rate almost to 10% before injury w a completely new approach and balanced stance–21 year old SS who have the potential to hit as Baez does do not grow on trees–ask the Astros and D-Backs who just drafted 2 of them 1 and 2 and both are older than Baez–market has shifted-completely-and Econ 101- something is only worth what someone else is willing to pay- so if Cubs aren’t willing to pay Russell, Schwarber, Edwards and 2 others for Gray then he is not worth that amount–and it would be ludicrous to pay that for Gray in the current market of hitters–sorry to be the one to break it to you but pitching market is down and hitters market is up–Grays a beast–but to get conrollable, projectable hitters at premium positions it’s going to cost a lot more…
Are you taking notes from Boston fans on how to overrate and hype your prospects, or is this happening organically?
” to get controllable, projectable hitters at premium positions it’s going to cost a lot more…” = absolutely, 100%, incorrect. Baez was still striking out at more than 1 a game this year even at AAA, so double that in the bigs – he’s simply a flawed guy at the big league level and about a third of the player Russell is.
Look, its as simple as this: talent that has PROVEN themselves at the big league level, and Sonny Gray in the playoffs and in game 162 last year has certainly shown he loves the biggest games in addition to basically being a top 5 SP on everyones lists is absolutely that, Gray’s overall value in a trade as a certified ACE dwarfs everything the Cubs organization – including Bryant, and you cannot argue otherwise. The fact that you are hyping a K machine as being equal is insulting.
Addison Russell+++ will get you Sonny Gray.
Javier Baez+ will get you Wade Miley.
If you don’t recognize the shift to controllable hitting be more valuable than controllable pitching I can’t help you—the market dictates price and demand- and currently the market favors controllable hitters above controllable pitchers- simple as that-
And if you can’t tell that based on the last 2 offseason a and the fact that this draft saw 3 shortstops go before any pitchers…debating w you is absolutely useless
Baez and Scnwarber are going nowhere. Zobrist and Clippard are being linked to Alcantara. Lake, and a couple of AA ballers. Possible that Vogelbach is in that trade instead of LAke.
No Gray is not the most valuable single player. Sale and Kluber are better and more valuable, just to name 2.
Sale & Kluber are signed to big money contracts. Gray is not. Value means money, why doesn’t anyone on here know this???
Probably because the entire top 11 pitchers have an ERA < 3 and that includes Jesse Chavez, Nick Martinez, Jason Hammel and Alfred Simon!!! Conversely, last year saw the least amount of runs scored since the early 90's(pre-steroid) therefore, supply and demand has now shifted–there is an abundance of quality starters to choose from- Detroit got a statisistically speaking top-10 starter in terms of ERA and whip via a low-cost trade, the Cubs got Jason Hammel @10 million a year and, prior to yesterday, Hammel led the league in WHIP And was top 10 in ERA–therefore, there is a larger supply of quality starters, hence, less demand. With hitters, and the decline of runs scored across the board, their vaue has begun to spike. This is why players like Sandoval and Seager get near 100 million or above 100 million dollar contracts when jus 4 years ago they'd be getting an aav of 10 million absolute tops–a lot of GMs, like yourself, were slow to identify the shift- however, now all have realized as you can see by the draft and last 2 offseasons–are elite pitchers still valuable? Absolutely! More valuable than controllable hitting? Absolutely not! If you don't understand that then you don't understand basic principles of supply/demand and you've remained either completely ignorant or apathetic(or both) to how today's game is..when there are less runs scored it becomes elite(or potentially elite) controllable hitters that demand the major cost in acquisition or free agency–when a ton of runs are scored it's the other way around…try to keep up.
“Gray is the most valuable singular player in the game behind Harper.”
It’s not like players like Trout and Kershaw are retired. Come on, man
Nope but Trout & Kershaw are signed to hundred million dollar deals – there’s a difference between “value” vs “performance”.
I mean at this point if I were Billy I’d consider trading Sonny to you guys, because of the amount of prospects you guys have. Sonny’s trade value is not going to get much higher then it is now.
Yeah, but you can take the names Schwarber, Russell, and Bryant out of your vocabulary as an A’s fan… They aren’t going anywhere.
Only maybe there too…
Schwarber has the best bat in the minors… Ask the Giants if they’d trade Buster Posey for Gray… Or ask the Twins if they would have traded a young Mauer…
It’s a no brainer. You keep your Catcher that can hit!
I think Baez & Coghlan for Zobrist & Clippard probably gets done and that wouldn’t mean waving a white flag for Oakland either.
No way the Cubs would do that. Zobrist is what, 35? And Clippard is a reliever who I believe is a FA after this season.
I am completely dumbfounded that you value a 34 year old, injury-riddled free agent to be and a relief pitcher who is a free agent to be so highly and are so steadfast about it..those two will net you an Alcantara type of Almora type(MAYBE) along w some flyers in AA(I.e. Wilson contreras, Chesny Young, etc) whenever beane trades Zobs and Clip, I have a feeling you’ll be sorely disappointed
Not happening. They wouldn’t move Baez for Syndergaard… Deffinitely not happening for those two.
The Cubs are willing to send Alcantara, Lake, and low A ball player for the 2 mentioned above is what I heard from Patrick Mooney I believe.
Source? Found nothing on Mooney’s twitter about it
forget Schwarber will take vogelbach and baez even if he is injured right now
You get a couple of solid, but not great, prospects for Clippard and Zobrist. If you can squeeze Baez or Schwarber, take it and run.
What about Chapman and Cueto for Hendricks, Schwarber & Edwards? Go all-in, Theo!
Crazy idea after watching the Tigers and Cubs:
Right now… David Price for Jon Lester. No other players involved.
Would Cubs fans endorse that idea with a “win now opportunity” this year, plus at least 5 top starters going into free agency?
Would Tigers trade a better pitcher now, for the long term promise of Lester?
How do you propose that works in all honesty? Would Cubs be paying all of his salary plus whatever they have to pay to lock up price? If the Cubs aren’t paying his salary why not just lock up price? As a Cubs fan id rather see price as the ace over Lester but not sure how this would work
No. Tigers would pay 100% of his salary. Cubs would get out from under the salary, and then use it in free agency to presumably lock up Price who has a good relationship with Maddon. Also they would then have more more money to potentially sign Cueto, Zimmerman, Greinke, the Shark and/or Fister.
Wouldn’t the Tigers be better suited to lock Price up for a little more money?
It appears Price will be much more expensive than Lester.
Cubs have that kind of money. I do not think that the Tigers do.
Time to put your head back up your a$$!
They have money to go after any FA pitcher they want next year already. They were second for Shields last year already, and all of their young talent is cost controlled.
They’ll bring in an ace this off season, maybe 2.
They’re one of the biggest markets in sports and they have Jackson’s salary coming off the books soon too.
Lester has a no trade clause. Only one Theo gave.
Smoking WHAT now? Theo LOVES Lester – that’s partly why they signed him to the mega-buck contract. He would never trade him this soon and admit he was wrong. I thought last fall they shouldn’t go after Lester – too expensive for what they’re getting, and so far, that looks about right. Love to be wrong going forward if he pitches us into the post-season. But I think we’re still a year away. Need better defense and better fundamentals and ability to scratch out runs. Like their record in 1-run games so far.
I see a fit with the padres for a ss
Cubs draft, to me, says we’ll have quite a few moves up our sleeves in trade season(IFA will further solidify) but w Happ and Deweese pretty much make both McKiney and Almora much more expendable(not saying they weren’t anyway) as is Alcantara considering once LaStella is healthy he’s capable of moving around in the same way(minus CF)–Almora OR McKiney would net a solid relief pitcher from a non-contending team–if the A’s don’t have a long win-streak then Almora for Clippard pretty much has to be a sure thing..(or another player, depending on how A’s view Almora)–still young for his age–has a good contact rate–still working on his approach, but w his contact rate if his BABIP goes back to norm he’s a .270-.280 hitter w .320ish OBP and a Gold Glove centerfielder as a floor–if his approach comes along(he’s still BARELY 21) then he’s a steal for a rental reliever..
Rays offer LHP Jake McGee. You send us OFFENSE. kthnxbye
I think he turns into a Piazza type catcher, great with the stick but just ok defensively.
Melvin has been loathe to trade within the division, particularly with the team 90 miles to the south who’s fans invade Miller Park like locusts when they are competitive, adding insult to injury in what has been an extremely disappointing season in Milwaukee. While he has broken that rule on occasion, I think there are 28 other teams he’d rather deal with than the Cubs and it’s no certainty any team will meet his asking price.
Melvin has to retool his team big time, without blowing it up. C. Gomez, Lucroy, Parra, Peralta the main keepers. Trading Braun now that he’s productive again could get a couple players and maybe a pitcher. They need players who get on base and play sound fundamentally. This has been a problem with this team for years – can’t play smallball. Too early to tell what they have coming up – couple of the young IFs have looked pretty good but their young pitchers are question marks. Management of organizations fall in love with the teams they build into contenders, particularly when they fill the house. But the Brewers time was 2011 and last year and when a team falls short a couple times over a 4-5 year period, it’s time to no longer just tweak a few spots, but to make wholesale changes. Melvin has done a good job with the Brewers – let’s see what he does next. Meanwhile, being a Cub fan who also likes the Brewers, I am enjoying watching the Cubs again, when possible – it’s good to see that they are interesting to watch again. But still at least a year away. Brewers have won 4 of 6 vs Chicago – if they played the Cubs more, maybe they’d be contending.
Cubs have the prospects to entice a trade with Phillies…..add Hamels and Paplebon to Cubs pitching staff and start printing play off tics!!!!!
That might work actually, even if we add Price or Zimmerman. Could you imagine a rotation involving Lester, Price/Zimmerman, Arrietta, Hamels, and Hammel in 16? Jason Hammel as your 5th, with that kind of skill in front of him? We’d arguably have the top rotation in the league.
Agreed but depends on the prospect cost for hamels/paps–
I am increasingly worried about trading Baez–the kids younger than Swanson or Bregman(1 and 2 in draft this year) and was hitting a ridiculous slash line w his improved approach before injury–to get BOTH paps and Hamels, I’d go Castro, Almora, Vogelbach(arguably 2nd best batters approach in minors), and Underwood–that’s a haul–Cubs pay all salary for hamels and Paps and Phils get a proven 14+ WARP who is still 2 years from his prime and on a team-friendly contract along w Almora and Vogs and Underwood–in 4 years that’s the Phils startin SS, 1st baseman, CF and a back-end rotation e potential to be mid rotation piece..the more I say the less I like it–but if it gets Cubs in an NLCS w a shot at the series plus multiple years of Hamels and Lester/arrieta-I’d be okay seeing them perform in Philly
Resist the temptation of giving up some good future talent for a RP that might help now in a quest that will probably fall short this season anyway. I go back past the Lou Brock trade and giving up young talent always spooks me.