The Chicago Cubs are very much a victim of their own success, at least when it comes to acquiring the players they need before the July 31 MLB trade deadline.
The team has exuded championship confidence so far this year and they’ve shown the kind of magic that comes from championship teams.
Carried by the force of their potent and versatile offense, they’ve overwhelmed opposition and have slugged their way to the top of the NL Central Division.
Their pitching, meanwhile, has also shown its moments of magic and true grit through adversity. The bullpen, crafted together by manager Craig Counsell and his staff, has gone from being regarded as a weak point of the team to recognition as one of the better pens in the game. Even the Cubs’ starting pitching, which has suffered through the loss of 40% of its rotation with the season-long injuries of Justin Steele and Javier Assad as well as the extended losses of Shota Imanaga and now Jameson Taillon due to injury, has somehow not fallen into total collapse.
The Chicago Cubs’ real world need for starting pitching
But, realistically, the rotation DOES need reinforcement if the goal is a deep playoff run and maybe even a stab at the World Series. Many feel that the team needs at least two starting pitchers to get where they need to be.
So, then, the questions center around who the Cubs can acquire by the deadline and, also, how much they would have to give up to get what they need.
Do the Cubs even have the trade capital to acquire two difference-making starting pitchers in what will be a seller’s market, especially when potential trade partners know the Cubs’ urgency in pursuing starters?
Sweetening the trade deadline pot
Chicago’s front office just may have to sweeten the pot considerably to make such acquisitions more realistic.
Could former top prospect and current starting third baseman Matt Shaw by that sweetener?
Now, on the surface, trading away the 23-year-old Shaw might seem counterintuitive from a team with, literally, no major league-viable backup to Shaw at third. But if it comes down to the bigger need, third base or starting pitching, Cubs president Jed Hoyer and the front office would have to choose the latter.
Could Shaw help get the starting pitching they need?
Offering up Shaw might even entice some on-the-fence sellers into a deal as the young talent still has plenty of upside potential despite his rookie struggles this year.
Mark Powell of Fansided recently floated out the possibility of trading away Shaw, specifically pertaining to a deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates for starter Mitch Keller.
Per Powell:
“So, as tough as this may be for Cubs fans to hear, their best bet might be including third baseman Matt Shaw in said deal. Shaw has struggled to acclimate to the MLB level, but he still has some of that prospect shine left on him, and the Pirates are desperate for big-league bats. Given this trade is happening within the NL Central, and thus the Bucs would be signing up to face Keller for the next three years on a regular basis, the asking price is sure to be high.
Shaw makes sense for several reasons. He has big-league experience, and the Pirates are currently shopping their own third baseman in Ke’Bryan Hayes. Shaw would be a plug-and-play 23-year-old brimming with potential. Those don’t come available often, and it’d be easy for [Pirates president, Ben] Cherington to spin such a trade as a win for both sides.”
Admittedly, the Cubs trading Shaw right now is a long shot fantasy proposition. But if the news breaks that they somehow secure the services of another full-time third baseman in the following days, the possibility of trading Shaw might not be so fantastical after all.
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