Chicago Cubs: 3 Jason Heyward trades that might work

I know a lot of Chicago Cubs fans likely read the headline of this article and laughed. Why in the world would anyone trade for Jason Heyward? We’ve argued on these pages that the Cubs need to cut ties with Heyward, and while the team unloaded seemingly everyone else at this year’s trade deadline, Heyward remains on this team.

Admittedly, the situation is different from that of the big names that were moved, such as Kris Bryant. Heyward still has two years and $44 million left on his contract, and he has badly underperformed for most of his contract that started in 2016. In fact, after a somewhat encouraging 2020, 2021 might have been the worst season of his career. Due to injury, he will sit out the remainder of this season.

Chicago Cubs: Is a Jason Heyward trade possible?

The good news is that, if the Cubs do want to unload Heyward this offseason, at least he doesn’t have a lot of years left on the contract. A lot of fans will argue that they should simply release him and eat the rest of the money, but perhaps there is some hope that they could trade him to another team and get SOMETHING in return, even if it’s another team’s bad contract.

Again, a lot of fans think this is hopeless. However, if the Cubs are willing to take on another player currently signed to a bad deal, maybe they can make something work. Now you might be wondering, why would they do that? It could be to give both Heyward and another player a change of scenery and a fresh start, but more importantly from the Cubs’ perspective, it would send a message that they are fully moving on from the mid-2010s era.

Here we will look at three trade possibilities. While none of these are ideal, perhaps the Cubs and another team could make the most of a bad situation for both clubs.

Chicago Cubs: Trade Jason Heyward to the Milwaukee Brewers for Jackie Bradley, Jr.

The Milwaukee Brewers made a big splash when they signed Jackie Bradley, Jr. away from the Boston Red Sox during spring training this year. He’s never been an elite hitter, but he’s been a solid defender who can contribute on offense. The Brewers have had a great season, as they are NL Central Champions, but the Bradley signing has been a disaster for them to this point.

Bradley, 31, has posted a 1.4 defensive WAR this year, again doing fine work, but his offensive WAR is a miserable -1.8. In 130 games, he’s batting .162 with an atrocious 34 OPS+. Again, though he’s never been an elite hitter, it’s a stunning drop in production for Bradley, whose OPS+ was 118 in 2020.

Bradley could opt out of his deal after this season, but we’ll assume he won’t since he’s due to make $9.5 million. His contract also includes a mutual $12 million option for 2023, along with an $8 million buyout. If that happens, the Cubs would owe Bradley at least $17.5 million, far less than the $44 million the Brewers would owe Heyward. The Cubs would likely have to throw in either some money or a prospect.

You may be wondering why the Brewers would want Heyward or the Cubs would want Bradley, but a deal like this would be an old-fashioned swap of bad contracts between division rivals. As far as the latter is concerned, Bradley would give the Cubs a veteran outfielder who does have a track record and some potential upside from his 2021 performance in 2022. Heyward, meanwhile, would provide a solid veteran presence with winning experience to an already good ballclub, even if he’s not much more than a bench player at this point.

Chicago Cubs: Trade Jason Heyward to the Washington Nationals for Patrick Corbin

The Cubs could go another route and try to get some pitching for Heyward. The Washington Nationals currently have at least two starting pitchers with bad contracts. Stephen Strasburg is a great pitcher when he’s healthy, but he’s had trouble staying on the mound and is still owed a ton of money.

Perhaps there’s a trade to be had for the southpaw Patrick Corbin instead. Corbin, 32, has two All-Star selections and two Cy Young Award places on his resume, but he was a major disappointment this year. In 31 starts, Corbin has posted a bloated 5.82 ERA. Four of his five starts in September have been good, so perhaps there’s hope he can turn things around in 2022. And on a roster full of question marks heading into next season, starting pitching is among the Cubs’ biggest needs.

The problem here, from the Cubs’ perspective, is that Corbin is still owed much more than Heyward is: $83.2 million over the next three years. So, a straight up swap would cost the Cubs close to $40 million. Perhaps the Nationals would be willing to pay a portion of Corbin’s salary to make the deal happen. Or, they could throw in a prospect or two.

Another thing to think about: Maybe the Nationals would throw in the disappointing Victor Robles for a change of scenery as well?

As far as trading for a starting pitcher, I thought about including a trade for the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Madison Bumgarner; however, the Nationals are more likely to try to be contenders in the near future than the Diamondbacks are, and therefore, a veteran addition like Heyward would make more sense for them than it would for Arizona.

As I stated earlier, none of these trades are ideal. However, maybe a swap of bad contracts could be good for both the Cubs and another team involved. We’ll see if the Cubs try to take this route this offseason.