REPORT: Astros Interested In Trade For One Of Cubs Core Players

Outside of some early offseason rumblings of the Rangers possibly looking into a Kris Bryant trade there haven't been many links between other teams and the Cubs in trade talks. There has been plenty of speculation and wild trade proposals thrown out by media outlets, but there's one name that has constantly been viewed as being available this offseason in a trade, Willson Contreras.

ESPN's Jeff Passan touched on the topic again this week, as executives across the league still believe the Cubs will make at least one big trade this winter and Contreras as at the front of the rumor mill.

Via ESPN.

The Chicago Cubs have been, according to various executives, "aggressive," "manic," "motivated" and "obvious" in their desire to trade someone. Or someones. The Cubs are going to make a move. They're just not sure what yet.
Contreras is the name bandied about the most, partially because at $5 million or so as a first-time arbitration-eligible player, he's cheap and comes with three full years of control. 

And now we have the first reported team interested in a trade for Contreras. According to The Athletic's Patrick Mooney And Sahadev Sharma, the Astros have the Cubs catcher on their radar this offseason.

Via The Athletic.

That next great chapter in franchise history might require giving up a homegrown Cub who helped make 2016 happen.With that in mind, the Astros went into this offseason with an interest in Willson Contreras, according to a source familiar with the team’s thinking, and they have a need for a frontline catcher.
Another industry source predicted the Cubs will position Contreras as an option for teams that didn’t win a bidding war for Yasmani Grandal, who signed a four-year, $73 million deal with the White Sox the week before Thanksgiving.

So far the top two catching free agents have signed, as the White Sox inked Yasmani Grandal to a four-year deal and the Braves agreed to a two-year contract with Travis d’Arnaud. Meanwhile, the Brewers just traded for Mariners catcher Omar Narvaez.

Mooney and Sharma's article is framed around the idea that Theo Epstein needs to find a team as aggressive as he's been in the past to pull off a trade that will net the Cubs a big return. The Astros could certainly fit that profile, having a stacked roster, but an aging pitching staff. If they want to maximize their window in the next two or three years, then trading for Contreras makes sense.

The Astros still have plenty of talent in their farm system and it's easy to see the Cubs identifying a few pitching prospects they'd like in return.

The rest of the free agent catching market is slim and with Narvaez now off to Milwaukee, Contreras becomes the most valuable catcher available if the Cubs find a team willing to give up big pieces in return.