Chicago Cubs: 10 bats to target as MLB trade deadline looms

Chicago Cubs: 10 bats to target at the trade deadline: #9 – Trey Mancini

You’ve just got to love Trey Mancini. This guy has all my respect for beating stage 3 colon cancer and coming back as soon as he did. For that, he is a warrior. Finishing second in the Home Run Derby this year, Mancini is a fan favorite in Baltimore. However, Baltimore is Baltimore and they are looking to sell. As previously noted with Santander, Mancini and John Means are also both believed to be available in an effort to finally clean house and move on.

Mancini currently owns a .261/.334/.458 slash line with 16 home runs and 57 driven in. Not far off from his career mark of .273/.334/.480, the first baseman has remained a consistent bright spot in an otherwise faltering lineup.

Due to having an extra year of team control on his contract before hitting the market after next season, Mancini would be a valuable trade chip for anyone looking for a shot of life in the offensive department. The Chicago Cubs could certainly utilize his services moving forward. My gut tells me if anyone gets extended this year, it’s Rizzo. Luckily, Mancini can man the outfield as well.

Currently earning $4.75 million for 2021, his third year of arbitration next season still figures to be somewhat team-friendly for a player of his caliber and talent. The Cubs should be all-in as he would be a strong piece to help turn the ship around in Chicago and be a leader in the clubhouse.

Chicago Cubs: 10 bats to target at the trade deadline: #8 – David Peralta

Eduardo Escobar would have made this list if it weren’t for the fact that he is a pending free agent and therefore wouldn’t be of much help to the Cubs moving forward. With these being said, we shift to David Peralta, another bright spot in Arizona.

Posting a career .287/.344/.467 slash spanning over his seven years in the desert, Peralta has been one of those guys who is a consistently above average hitter but doesn’t garner much attention due to the fact that he’s on a team that currently sits dead-last in all of MLB at 31-69.

This year the Arizona outfielder is slashing .256/.329/.402 with four long balls and 43 knocked in. It seems his power has gone down since receiving shoulder surgery on his AC joint in 2019. However, when Peralta is swinging it he is valuable to any team he plays on. We don’t expect the Cubs to be buyers, going after the big fish at the deadline. However, after making the necessary moves, picking up a bat like Peralta would be a nice add on.

Peralta is earning $7.5 million this year and will make the same next year before hitting the open market.

Chicago Cubs: 10 bats to target at the trade deadline: #7 – Jordan Groshans

Let’s now dip into the minor leagues for a minute as we look at  Toronto prospect Jordan Groshans. At 21 years old, Groshans has been exceptional thus far. While playing in rookie ball in 2018 he posted a .296/.353/.446. He was drafted number 12 straight out of high school in the first round of the draft by Toronto.

In 2019 at A-ball, he slashed .337/.427/.482. Of course, there was no minor league season in 2020 due to the pandemic. Back at it this year, Groshans is batting .294/.375/.453 to go along with five home runs and 28 RBI in 45 games played. Not too shabby.

Even more so then just his bat, the reason Groshans should be a top target for the Cubs if they are looking to re-tool, is the fact that Groshans is listed as a third baseman and shortstop. Anybody know any third basemen or shortstops that may be on their way out on the North Side?

Groshans is one of those talents with a very high ceiling. Baseball America has him as the 49th-best prospect in all of baseball. So if you’re trying to pry him away, it’ll take a Craig Kimbrel-caliber move to make it happen. But if Jed Hoyer can get a deal done involving Groshans, it could very well be one that pays off for years to come.

Chicago Cubs: 10 bats to target at the trade deadline: #6 – Mitch Haniger

Heading back to the big leagues for our #6 bat the Chicago Cubs should target, we land on Mitch Haniger. Seattle is actually having somewhat of a good rebound year, sitting at 53-46, seven games back in the AL West but only 2 1/2 back in the wild card race. Haniger is currently slashing .262/.319/.506. However, his average would most likely be higher as he is currently not hitting well in Seattle. Let’s take a glance at a couple splits :

• At home in 2021: .231/.283/.434 with a wOBA of .307, an ISO of .203 and a wRC+ of 102. He also has a walk rate of 5.6 percent and strike out rate of 25.8 percent in Seattle this season.
• On the road in 2021: .294/.355/.578 with a wOBA of .393, an ISO of .283 and a wRC+ of 152. He also has a higher walk rate of 8.0 percent while lowering his strike out rate to 21 percent on the road.

Can we please bring him to Wrigley so he can smash home runs and doubles Nick Castellanos style? The only thing that worries me about Haniger is that teams will be looking to up the ante and outbid the Cubs for his services. Hoyer will not be looking to buy and get into a bidding war, but if Haniger can manage to fly under the radar a little, he is absolutely worth putting together a package for.

Even if they are reluctant to move him, the Mariners know his best trade value will be right now. He currently earns $3,010,000 in his second year of arbitration. Therefore, he has another year of team control before free agency next offseason.

Chicago Cubs: 10 bats to target at the trade deadline: #5 – Robert Hassell

Robert Hassell makes this list as one of the most highly-regarded prospects in the San Diego organization.  In fact, he is the only player on this list who is at Single-A ball. The reason being his absolutely sky-high potential. The 6’2′” 195 lb. lefty outfielder has a hit grade of 60 (on a 20-80 grading scale.) His run, field and arm grade all sit at 55, as well as an even 50 for power. Overall he is rated at 55. Needless to say, for a 19-year-old, that’s impressive.

With the Class-A Lake Elsinore Storm, he is batting .317/.415/.471 in 259 at-bats so far this season. It is not long before he will be called up to Double-A before climbing the ranks over the next two years with a big league ETA of 2023.

Simply put, he should most definitely be on the list of players the Cubs can swoop up for a return if they were to trade someone like Kimbrel to the Padres. It would be nice to see the Chicago trade a star and another prospect for Hassell and another player as well. San Diego Padres will definitely will be buying and I am interested to see who they target here. They have Tatis and Machado on the left side of the infield, so i would expect they would want to further bolster the back end of their bullpen with a potential Melancon/Kimbrel tandem.

A return including Robert Hassell could loom very large in the near future.

Chicago Cubs: 10 bats to target at the trade deadline: #4 – Adam Frazier

Turning our attention to the NL Central, the last-place Pittsburgh Pirates are making breakout season candidate Adam Frazier available. Nothing much to see here, he is only batting .327/.390/.453 while currently leading the league with 122 hits in 373 ABs, good for a 3.1 WAR on the season.

As far as his contract goes, Frazier has another year of team control after this season before reaching free agency. Therefore, as you can imagine, his value is through the roof here for any team looking to contend, re-tool and contend soon, or what have you. Check out some of his splits this year:

• v RHP: .332/.393/.432 – .100 ISO – .362 wOBA – 128 wRC+
• v LHP: .314/.381/.510 – .190 ISO – .384 wOBA – 142 wRC+

It’s not everyday you see reverse lefty splits like this. The problem with Frazier, much like Haniger, is I expect him to be highly sought after. With not many contenders in desperate need of a second baseman (besides the obvious White Sox) Frazier would be a great fit and a true leadoff hitter should the Cubs be willing to meet Pittsburgh’s asking price.

This once again would be a scenario I could only see happening if the Cubs manage to sell their pieces and come back to buy at the end of the deadline. Personally, I would worry about that other Chicago team upping the ante, as they are the main contender in need of a second baseman.

Chicago Cubs: 10 bats to target at the trade deadline: #3 – Brett Baty

The next two prospects land on our list not only because they are highly-regarded prospects, but because there already has been loads of reported interest in Kris Bryant by the Mets over the years. With the Mets contending at the same time as they could use a rental in the former MVP, it all seems like a perfect fit. Meet Brett Baty.

Baty is slashing .288/.377/.467 in 2021 between High and Double-A. Unfortuantely in Double-A thus far, he is batting a mere .161 in a small sample size of 31 at-bats. There’s more than enough time to get back up in the high .200s with the right adjustments, though. A 2019 first-round pick and the #73 prospect in the game according to MLB Pipeline, the #4 Mets prospect scores the following:

• Power: 60
• Arm: 60
• Hit: 50
• Fielding: 50
• Run: 45
• Overall: 55.

Once the slugger gets back to hitting his stride, he can quickly move up the ranks of any organization. Listed as a third baseman and left fielder, if would be nice to replace Bryant should he be dealt to the Mets. Baty is a player that if KB is traded, has a high chance of finding himself batting for the Tennessee Smokies within the next week.

Chicago Cubs: 10 bats to target at the trade deadline: #2 – Ronny Mauricio

Right back to the well with the New York Mets here as Ronny Mauricio is a player that has definitely been linked to the Cubs in regards to trading for Bryant.

Mauricio grades out at 60 power, 60 arm, 55 field, 50 hit and 40 run. Overall he rates out to a 55. Though he hasn’t found his stride yet, he remains the second-ranked prospect in the Mets organization, batting .251/.290/.452.

Mauricio is a 20-year-old prospect sure to move up with an MLB debut ETA of 2022. That would be fantastic for both the Mets and whichever team he is traded to. If it’s for KB, I personally am more fond of Baty. In regards to the MLB Pipeline, I will trust the pros judgement here as they currently have Mauricio ranked over Baty.

Keep the name Ronny Mauricio in your mind in the coming week, as the Mets have the strongest ties to Bryant, and they know it will most likely take a solid prospect to obtain him. Especially if Hoyer throws in a prospect of his own to sweeten the pot.

Chicago Cubs: 10 bats to target at the trade deadline: #1 – Austin Martin

The #1 target I would love to see the Cubs acquire is 2020 first-round pick Austin Martin. I don’t care what the Blue Jays want for him. Bryant is probably more the guy they would target. Cavan Biggio is batting .223 and they could use an upgrade at the hot corner. Match-up wise, Biggio would still get his reps due to Bryant’s noted versatility in the field this year and the fact that the DH is available to AL teams.

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I am just hoping for a Toronto hot streak here to prompt them to become buyers. They are 5-5 in their last 10 and now sit 9 1/2 back. Not an ideal situation if you are trying to sell to a team that is not necessarily heavy on buying to secure yourself a top prospect.

Martin is the #16 prospect in MLB and #2 in the Blue Jays organization. He is currently batting .268/.404/.361 in his first year of pro ball for the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats after having a ridiculous career slash line of .368/.474/.532 for Vanderbilt in three seasons.

Like I said, the Jays would have to decide they’re all-in, which is hard to envision given the division they play in and the relative youth of that core. Even if they don’t win this year, they’re poised for years of success.

But if they decide to roll the dice and add someone like Kimbrel or Bryant, Martin is a blue chip prospect who could dramatically shape the future of Chicago Cubs baseball. This kid would be an excellent addition and a major part of the next great team to call Wrigleyville home.