With Friday night’s loss, the Cubs dropped to a season-low 11 games under .500 and while the players and the coaching staff would not like to see another July sell-off, the writing is on the wall that the Cubs could be one of the biggest sellers leading up to the July 31 trade deadline.
The Cubs talked about the importance of getting off to a good start in the spring. The team has been in just about every game this year and as FanGraphs pointed out, the Cubs have played better than their record indicates. But the bottom line is, Memorial Day is still two days away and the Cubs are in the middle of their longest losing streak of the season with a very difficult stretch of games ahead of them.
Once the draft is in the rearview mirror, the Cubs will likely focus on turning short-term pieces into long-term assets.
While the rumors are few and far between right now, many feel the Cubs will look to trade players such as Scott Feldman, Kevin Gregg and possibly David DeJesus. James Russell has been mentioned as a player the Cubs could listen on but some think that Russell could stick around due to his low cost, what the Cubs could want in return for him and the fact the organization is void of left handed relievers near Major League ready.
Several scouts were on hand to watch Matt Garza face the Pirates and if Garza keeps pitching the way he did last Tuesday, teams will be calling the Cubs about his availability. It is unclear at this point due to several factors if the Cubs are looking to trade Garza or keep him.
Alfonso Soriano
Alfonso Soriano is frustrated and no longer wants to be on a losing team according to a report from Cubs.com. Soriano said the games that upset him the most is when they have leads and end up losing a game they should have won.
Soriano likes what he’s seen from the rotation and feels they are good enough to have a better record than they do at this point of the season.
June Draft
After meeting with Jonathan Gray earlier in the week, Theo Epstein, Jed Hoyer and Jason McLeod were in Northern California on Friday according to the Tribune watching Kris Bryant and Mark Appel. The Tribune reported the Cubs have “narrowed their choice for the second overall pick” to four college players … Jonathan Gray, Mark Appel, Kris Bryant and Colin Moran. The Tribune labeled third baseman Moran as a “dark horse”.
News, Notes and Rumors
According to multiple reports, Dale Sveum plans to use either Alfonso Soriano or Dioner Navarro as the Cubs DH during the two games on the South Side. The White Sox are planning on running out lefties Jose Quintana (Monday) and Chris Sale (Tuesday) for the two games at the Cell. The Cubs should face three lefties in the four games against the Sox next week with John Danks making his return to the Sox rotation on Friday. The Cubs are 4-10 in games started by lefties this season and Dale Sveum has mentioned the possibility of not using his right-handed lineup against lefty starters.
According to a report from Baseball America, “the Cubs have made it clear that they will do whatever it takes to land Dominican outfielder Eloy Jimenez and Venezuelan shortstop Gleyber Torres” when the international free agent signing period begins on July 2. Ben Badler also reported the Cubs will “spend heavily on two players, then possibly trade for more pool space.”