Chicago Cubs: 3 potential (and 2 controversial) Kris Bryant trade partners

Chicago Cubs – Kris Bryant trade destinations: #3 – Milwaukee Brewers

Ouch. That’s all I have to say. The fact is, the Milwaukee Brewers are going to be buyers at the deadline. Another fact is, the Brewers have their starting third and first basemen, as well as center fielder, all on the IL. In case you missed it, those are all positions where Bryant has seen time.

The Brewers bolster a top-notch rotation starring Brandon Woodruff, Freddie Peralta and Corbin Burnes. They also possess a top three bullpen. All together, this group of arms is definitely strong enough to make a deep run into October. It’s almost certain they will be looking to add a bat or two to their lineup.

The only problem? Milwaukee also happens to have near bottom of the barrel production from their third basemen this year. Renting a player like Bryant not only replaces Travis Shaw’s lack of production in the order but with Bryant’s defensive versatility, he opens up other options and gives guys a day off here and there to stay rested moving forward.

Helping Milwaukee is selfishly the last thing any Cubs fan would want but the name of the game right now is get as many mid-caliber players as possible for the players you more than likely won’t have on your roster next year, free up as much payroll as possible and spend big in the offseason. This seems like it could be Hoyer’s plan as he has stated he is not necessarily looking for a complete rebuild. 

With a seven-game lead in the NL Central, Milwaukee will be looking to put the nail in the coffin and clinch their second division championship since 2018. To do so, they might need to pull off something big at the deadline.

Chicago Cubs – Kris Bryant trade destinations: #2 – Chicago White Sox

There is some speculation that Kris Bryant could be headed south – to the South Side of Chicago, that is. Personally, I wouldn’t mind fireballer Garrett Crochet in our bullpen moving forward. in 31 appearances for the White sox dating back to 2020, the 22-year-old owns a 2.23 ERA with a 3.10 FIP. You love to see these numbers for an extremely cost-effective, young arm.

With left Eloy Jimenez and young star center fielder Luis Robert both on the IL, Bryant’s five-position glove, once again, comes into play. No need to necessarily move Yoan Moncada away from the hot corner, unless you wanted to move him to second base to fill in for the loss of Nick Madrigal. If this were to happen, we could all envy an around-the-diamond tantum of Jose Abreu, Yoan Moncada, Tim Anderson and Kris Bryant.

The White Sox currently also own a 7 1/2 game lead heading into Sunday’s action in the AL Central. With a top bullpen and a powerful rotation, It’s scary how good this team will be once Jimenez, Robert and Yasmani Grandal get off the IL.

Adding Kris Bryant to the mix? The White Sox might become favorites to win the World Series. If Rick Hahn and crew know what they are doing, they better act fast because there is for sure at least one other team that will come knocking on the door before July 30.

Chicago Cubs – Kris Bryant trade destinations: #1 – New York Mets

Someone explain to me how the New York Mets are in first place and four games up at 47-39 while averaging 3.74 runs per game, which is good for 29th in the league. Nevertheless, here we are and it has to be talked about.

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When you’re in first place, you buy to fill whatever your biggest holes are. JD Davis is currently on the 60-day injured list and New York needs an efficient third baseman to man the hot corner. Once again, due to Bryant’s ability to play multiple positions, when and if Davis does return, KB can simply be moved around as the Mets please.

Bryant would give the Mets a shot of life on both offense and defense. If New York can start to swing the bat, their lead in the NL East would drastically grow as offensive production has been their biggest weakness thus far.

It has been noted that third isn’t the team’s only need, but with only a four-game lead that can vanish in one series, they just might be the most aggressive, especially when you have the richest owner in the game willing to open the checkbook.

Whoever is the most aggressive and is willing to give up the most in a trade, I say pull the trigger. There is no return in letting Bryant walk in free agency for nothing and you can re-sign him in the offseason whether you trade him or not.