3 insane Cubs Mariners trade ideas to heat up the winter meetings

The Chicago Cubs have reportedly had trade talks with the Seattle Mariners involving second baseman Nico Hoerner.

The Mariners have a few very interesting names that the Cubs could be interested in. The Cubs have many high-end prospects to supplement a Hoerner trade and potentially solve some of Seattle's problems. Cody Bellinger could also be a factor, but his expensive contract may be too much for the Mariners to handle given their current payroll situation.

These scenarios range from reasonable to downright unrealistic so keep that in mind as we go through this thought exercise.

Trade 1

Cubs receive: RHP Bryce Miller

Mariners receive: 2B Nico Hoerner, RHP Cade Horton, LHP Jordan Wicks, and C/1B Moises Ballesteros

The Mariners have five elite starting pitchers who will be under team control for several years to come. If they are looking to improve their lineup, they need to be open to moving one of them. in this scenario, they send Bryce Miller to the Cubs, a 26-year-old starter who would immediately upgrade Chicago's rotation. Miller took a huge step forward in his sophomore season, posting a 2.94 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, and 171 strikeouts.

More importantly for the Cubs, given their shaky bullpen performance the past couple of years, Miller tossed 180.1 innings in 2024. If he were able to come close to that again, Chicago would finally have multiple workhorses who, if they stay healthy, have the potential to eat 150+ innings.

Prying a starter like Miller away would come at a hefty price, especially because he is coming off a career year and hasn't even hit his first year of salary arbitration yet. Wicks could immediately plug into the back of the Mariners rotation while Horton provides close to MLB-ready talent for rotation/ bullpen depth. Horton's inclusion in this deal is obviously risky, but the Cubs organization would still have ample starting pitching depth while simultaneously upgrading the rotation.

Ballesteros does not have a clear path forward with the Cubs and they project him to shift away from the catching position. He would give the Mariners a solid bat that could fill their need at first base and give their lineup more power. Hoerner would also be a gold-glove upgrade at second base while the Cubs would likely elevate Matt Shaw to the full-time second baseman.