Chicago Cubs can’t help but play ‘what if’ after Tuesday night’s loss

Chicago Cubs will be looking to the south for years to come

His bat is of course only going to get better over time and it surely would have fit in with this group of Cubs hitters. The North Siders’ offense is of course known to go into some serious slumps so I’m sure his bat would have been quite a luxury to have in instances like those.

The idea of Jimenez playing at Wrigley Field gets you thinking about what if the Cubs had never made the trade that sent him to the Sox. Well, I think the last few years would have gone a lot different but it’s still fun to imagine him in the lineup.

If they kept him he probably would have ended up in right field which would have ultimately shifted Jason Heyward to center. In order to improve their pitching, the Cubs probably would have traded Albert Almora or he would be their fourth outfielder.

Again, looking at this trade I think it made sense at the time and it still makes sense for both teams. The Cubs absolutely needed a starter like Quintana to round out the rotation and the White Sox probably got a full-fledged superstar in Jimenez.

Now, I’m not going to overreact to one game in June where Jimenez and the White Sox clearly got the better of the Cubs and say they absolutely won the trade. It’s too easy to get caught up in that kind of moment on both sides.

At the end of the day, the winner of this trade should be determined by who capitalized on the deal and won more championships. That answer may not be revealed for quite some time as Jimenez’s career is just starting as is the White Sox’s window. So for the Cubs, it’s a little simpler, if they don’t win a title with Quintana, the trade was a failure. Simple as that.