At the beginning of June, the Chicago Cubs were coming out of a miserable May with the expectation that things would quickly turn around. After an even worse June, the Cubs are now in a position that has been very familiar lately. They are in no place to be buyers at the deadline to make a playoff push. The best teams are significantly better than them. The Cubs are starting to think about selling.
This team is in dead last of a division considered one of the weakest in baseball. They sit 11.5 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers, who just took two of three from them this past weekend. Technically, a Wild Card berth is still in play. They are just five games out of the final spot. However, after their performance in June, they are on the losing side of tiebreakers with almost every National League team.
The players who could have helped the Cubs turn things around a month ago are now probably going elsewhere. What could have been salvaged in June is now a wash for the rest of the year. The Cubs will not be buying help at the deadline with their highly touted prospects. They will be selling what MLB talent they have and can.
Realistically, only a couple of pieces on the roster are untouchable. However, there are not a lot of favorable trades to be had. Cody Bellinger has already been at the top of rumors, which makes sense. Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki have no-trade clauses. Dansby Swanson’s contract is not going anywhere. If you want to keep any good faith, Shota Imanaga and Justin Steele are staying. There is also one fan-favorite we hoped would be staying in Chicago for much longer than the extension he just signed, but that was just put into significant jeopardy.
MLB Insider Jon Morosi was on the MLB Network Monday morning discussing the upcoming trade deadline. He has been speculating who should be buying and who may be selling as the deadline approaches. After the abysmal June that was for the Cubs, Morosi believes they will be sellers. He also said they have had conversations with the Seattle Mariners about middle-infielder Nico Hoerner.
Hoerner has been hitting the ball hard in 2024 but has been very unlucky with where the ball has ended up. Still, he has built his average back up to .248 with an on-base percentage of .334. His defense speaks for itself at both second base and shortstop.
At the beginning of the 2023 season, Hoerner signed an extension with the Cubs that was supposed to keep him in Chicago through the 2026 season. Now, after 2024 has gone south as fast as it has, the Cubs’ plans may be changing. The “retooling” fans were promised after the championship core departed in 2021 has turned into a botched rebuild.
2024 was supposed to be the Cubs’ coming out party, returning to contention and opening a long championship window. Instead, it has been more frustrating than any 100-loss season of the past. Jed Hoyer should be on the hot seat for his underperformance as President of Baseball Operations.
