3 long-term catcher trade targets for the Chicago Cubs to consider to upgrade from Miguel Amaya

The Cubs might be able to pry Austin Wells away from the Yankees in a Cody Bellinger deal

The New York Yankees have egg on their face after losing out on the Juan Soto sweepstakes to their crosstown rival. Their brass must be itching to save face after the embarrassment, and after losing the Dominican superstar, have holes in the outfield and at first base.

Fortunately for the Cubs, their most available player, Cody Bellinger, can man both of those positions. He also has a lefty swing that would play up and take full advantage of the short right field porch in the Bronx.

Adding to his appeal to the Yankees, adding Bellinger doesn't impact their pursuit of either the top free-agent first basemen or outfielders, as he can fill either role allowing them to recover by adding the best possible combination of talent now with Soto out of the picture.

The Cubs could capitalize on the ideal fit and the Yankees' desperation, and ask for 26-year-old catcher Austin Wells as part of the return package. At one point ranked by FanGraphs as the Yankees' number-two prospect and number 51 overall, Wells exhausted his rookie eligibility in 2024 en route to a 3.4 fWAR campaign.

Known in the minors for his bat, Wells only slashed .229/.322/.395 with 13 homers last season. Instead, he impressed with his defense. Per Baseball Savant's StatCast data, Wells' 12 framing runs ranked in the 96th percentile, while his blocking ranked in the 75th percentile, and his caught stealing runs (four) ranked in the 53rd percentile. The total package was good for 12 fielding runs which ranked in the 96th percentile.

That is elite defensive production, and given his pedigree, the bat should be even better going forward. Wells already possesses well-above-average plate discipline as evidenced by his 11.4% walk rate last season. If he combines that patience with the power he displayed in the minors and the elite defense he will be a true star.

There's no indication that the Yankees would consider moving him, but the Cubs would be remiss if they didn't kick the tires and dangle Bellinger who'd be a picture perfect fit for the Yankees. If they can pry Wells away, they could have a long-term catcher with multiple All-Star potential.