The Chicago Cubs will have to make a big trade by this year’s trade deadline.
The team needs starting pitching to replace the lost-for-the-season Justin Steele and secure a rotation currently missing Shota Imanaga and Javier Assad. They also need help for a bullpen that has been wildly inconsistent and is currently lacking a true shutdown closer.
On the back burner is a possible need for a third baseman if top prospect Matt Shaw doesn’t prove himself major league-ready in his second stint in the bigs.
The reality is that the Cubs may not get everything they need to absolutely secure a deep playoff run, but they WILL have to mortgage a good piece of their future to get ALMOST there. The questions are how much will they have to barter away and who will be the prospects sent to another organization.
Which Chicago Cubs Top Prospect Will Be Traded?
Looking at the Cubs’ top 5 prospects, their no. 1 and no. 2– Matt Shaw and Cade Horton– are already in the majors, with expectations that they’ll contribute to the team’s postseason drive. So, that leaves outfielder Owen Caissie (no. 3), catcher/first baseman Moises Ballesteros (no. 4), and outfielder Kevin Alcantara (no. 5) as the organization’s most attractive trade bait.
And, of the three Cubs top prospects still in the minors, it’s looking like Alcantara will be the most likely to go.
With the Chicago outfield already set at all three positions, the 22-year-old’s only path to the majors is as a fourth outfielder or as an emergency replacement in case of multiple injuries.
There is already some suggestion that Alcantara is beginning to stagnate as a prospect because of that lack of path to a big league gig. Baseball America recently dropped the young asset from their Top 100 prospects list, pointing to that apparent stagnation.
The Good And Bad Of Kevin Alcantara
Alcantara has not had a great year for the Triple-A Iowa Cubs so far, hitting just .248 as of this writing with 5 home runs and a strikeout rate of over 33%. But he is second on the team with 25 RBIs and is coming off a 2-home run game on Wednesday, with 3 home runs hit in the last 4 games.
The native of the Dominican Republic has great tools, though, and a history of success. He’s also young enough to be a work in progress with a high ceiling.
Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report recently named Alcantara the Cub most likely to be dealt at the trade deadline.
Per Miller:
“The Chicago Cubs are probably going to be the most aggressive suitor of Miami’s Sandy Alcantara. Justin Steele is done for the year, and neither Ben Brown nor Jameson Taillon is thriving in the rotation. [Though, Taillon did smoke the Marlins on Tuesday.] If and when Colin Rea comes back to earth, they could be mashing the proverbial panic button.
It’s going to take at least one (perhaps more than one) top 100 prospect to get the Marlins to part with Alcantara, but wouldn’t it be fun if that top prospect had the same last name?
Kevin Alcántara had a very brief, 1-for-10 cup of coffee in the majors at the end of last season, and has been scuffling a bit this year at Triple-A Iowa. The 22-year-old outfielder is dripping with potential, though, tallying at least 13 home runs and 13 steals in each of the past three years.
They’d surely rather not part with him, with Kyle Tucker slated for free agency this winter while both Seiya Suzuki and Ian Happ are headed there after next season, too. But doing something major about this rotation is a borderline must.”
Which Outfield Prospect?
Potential trade partners looking for a young outfield prospect could also target Caissie, but it would just depend on what that team needs and wants for their organization. Alcantara is more “toolsy” and athletic, while the 22-year-old Caissie is more of a corner outfield power hitter.
Either way, it’s probably going to cost the Cubs multiple top prospects to land the player or two they need to round out their roster. It seems like a foregone conclusion that Alcantara will be one of them.
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1 Comment
They need to contact the A’S for pitcher that they received from the Yankees 2 years ago.