Will Cubs Trade A Player From Their Young Core? GM Jed Hoyer Weighs In

The Chicago Cubs have the best record in the National League at the All-Star break and the front office is busy looking for more pitching depth to help out in the stretch run and hopefully a long postseason run. Although the Cubs have put up strong pitching numbers, the depth in the rotation is still a concern at the moment with Yu Darvish's return still up in the air and Tyler Chatwood struggling to get through five innings every time he starts. The Cubs hope to have Darvish back by the end of July or early August, but regardless of how he returns, the team will still be pursuing a starting pitcher.

Last week Cubs' GM Jed Hoyer was on 670 The Score and said the following regarding the team's plans heading into the final couple weeks before the trade deadline. Via 670 The Score.

"We have some long stretches in the second half without off days and things like that. I think we're going to be talking to a lot of teams about pitching and pitching depth at the deadline, and I think at some level Yu's availability probably does play into that. But at the same time, we're going to need that depth regardless because of our schedule. We'll be talking to a lot of teams and exploring a lot of opportunities to find that depth."

The Cubs have replenished their pitching staff every trade deadline since 2015, when they first made smaller deals for Dan Haren and Tommy Hunter. In 2016, they traded for Mike Montgomery, Aroldis Chapman and Joe Smith and last year they got Jose Quintana for the rotation and Justin Wilson for the bullpen. This year is no different, as the Cubs have been linked to a few pitchers already. They've scouted Tampa Bay Rays starter Nathan Eovaldi and have also been connected to Toronto Blue Jays starter J.A. Happ.  Yet, the biggest name in trade rumors for the Cubs is Jacob deGrom from the New York Mets. Last week 670 The Score's Bruce Levine said deGrom was on the Cubs' radar. The possibility of the Cubs trading for deGrom isn't as crazy as you think because although the Cubs don't have the big name prospects to make a deal of that magnitude they do have more than enough depth on the major-league roster to pull it off.  That's the biggest dilemma the Cubs have, as they have an embarrassment of riches in position players on their current 25-man roster. At any time, the Cubs have three players on their bench that could easily be starting nearly every day for many teams across both leagues. So, that's why it's been speculated that maybe the Cubs could eventually trade one of their young players for some pitching help maybe as soon as this year. Hoyer met with reporters in San Diego and he was asked whether the front office would be willing to trade players from the MLB roster, as he had already made it clear the Cubs are pursuing pitching depth.

So, Hoyer answered by pointing out the team's loyalty to the current core group of players. However, that really didn't answer the question directly because Hoyer was asked about the entire roster and the core isn't every single position player. There was no clarification on what players are considered being in the core, but the obvious names are Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Willson Contreras, Kyle Schwarber, Javier Baez and Addison Russell. But again, there were no specifics, but are Albert Almora Jr. and Ian Happ also considered part of the core group? For now that will remain a mystery, but if Almora and Happ are part of the core group of players that the Cubs feel loyalty to, then a big trade for a starter like deGrom won't happen. The Cubs have also been linked to a few relievers, the strongest connection being to Baltimore Orioles closer Zach Britton. Make sure to check out our weekly baseball show, Pinwheels and Ivy Podcast, where we'll be talking about the latest Cubs news and trade rumors. Oh and we're giving away a signed Jose Abreu bat! https://www.facebook.com/SportsMockery/photos/a.358052540884147.83608.243629615659774/1871940696161983/?type=3&theater Android users, click here to subscribe.