Chicago Cubs should be eyeing Kansas City Royals trade assets in this upcoming series

The Chicago Cubs are welcoming the Kansas City Royals to Wrigley Field for a 3-game series starting Monday and there’s a lot of intrigue swirling around the North Siders at the moment.

As of this writing, the Cubs are now tied with the red-hot Milwaukee Brewers atop the NL Central Division. This troubling development bleeds right into the second point of intrigue with the team– the July 31 trade deadline.

The Cubs are expected to be aggressive buyers at this coming deadline, in pursuit of talent needed during the pending pennant race and for what they hope to be a deep playoff run.

The Chicago Cubs’ trade deadline needs

Chief among their needs is starting pitching to fortify a rotation battered and strained by injury.

After that, third base has become a priority as rookie Matt Shaw has so far failed to deliver offensively at the major league level. If a full-time third base replacement can’t be found at the deadline, the Cubs may pivot to the pursuit of a stable bench piece, who would also be hot corner-capable.

After starting pitching and third base, the focus would be on relief pitching for the purposes of depth and reinforcement to a bullpen that has performed well above expectations this year.

The incoming Royals could have some of those pieces Chicago needs.

What the Kansas City Royals have to offer

The obvious asset on the Royals’ roster is right-handed starting pitcher Seth Lugo.

The 35-year-old is having an outstanding season, posting a 2.94 ERA in 18 starts. Converted from a reliever in 2023, the 10-year veteran has been one of the more consistently good starters in baseball since then.

On the surface, Lugo would appear to be exactly what the Cubs are looking for this deadline. He would fit in nicely, possibly as the right-handed rotation change-up between lefty aces Shota Imanaga and Matthew Boyd, giving the team a tough front three for postseason play.

Contractually, he has a $15 million player option for 2026, which he most probably will turn down in pursuit of free agent money. This means that the Cubs would be looking at a rental when it comes to Lugo.

The Royals also have an attractive option at third base in the form of the 25-year-old Maikel Garcia, who has an above average glove, a .261 batting average over the course of 387 big league games, and many years of team control.

The right-handed hitting Garcia would be an immediate offensive upgrade over Shaw, but it’s debatable whether he has the upside that the Cubs’ former top prospect has.

Then, there are the Royals’ relievers, headed by closer Carlos Estevez, who was just signed by the team this offseason to a two-year, $20 million deal with a $13 million club option for a third year. It would be odd to see Kansas City turn around and trade the righty after just signing him to be their closer, but if the demand is great enough, all indications point to the front office being willing to entertain offers.

The Cubs probably won’t be one of those teams throwing trade capital at the Royals for Estevez, but they may have some interest in one of the good, young bullpen arms on the major league squad.

The asking price

In return, the Royals want bats for their pitching-rich, but offense-starved team. Cubs top prospect, outfielder Owen Caissie fits that bill, as do offense-first prospects Moises Ballesteros and Jonathon Long.

Don’t rule out the possibility of Chicago putting together some sort of multi-player package deal that would ease the sting of having to give up top prospects, not just for the Royals, but with other teams as well.

The Royals, four games under .500 and 5.5 games from the last AL Wild Card spot, are leaning towards being sellers at the deadline, despite recently acquiring Adam Frazier from the Pirates. The Cubs, with a sound thrashing in this series, could help push the Royals towards being definite sellers.

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