Cubs' trade target tied to endless speculation might finally be on the move

It remains to be seen if the Chicago Cubs will wind up as buyers or sellers this summer, but if they fall into the former category, it's safe to assume they'll be involved in just about every pitching-related trade rumor out there.

One name that's expected to be available and has been a rumored Cubs trade target for some time is Miami Marlins right-hander Sandy Alcantara. In his Sunday morning round-up, MLB insider Bob Nightengale offered this nugget on the former National League Cy Young winner.

Teams are convinced that this is the year that the Marlins will trade ace Sandy Alcantara, who is under control for one more season with a $21 million club option.

Sandy Alcantara makes a lot of sense for the Cubs in 2026 - and beyond

So, not only would Alcantara give the Cubs' rotation a major boost, but he'd help paper over the flurry of departures the staff will suffer at year's end. Alcantara's former Marlins teammate, Edward Cabrera, and Ben Brown are the only carry-forward members of the current rotation (Cade Horton, technically, will return but his timetable is unclear and Justin Steele comes with questions, as well) - so having Alcantara for 2027 would be huge.

The big righty has looked a bit more like his old self this season, but is still far removed from the dominance he displayed from 2020-22, when he carried a 2.74 ERA and 11.1 fWAR across 72 starts and nearly 480 innings of work. He's been a workhorse this year for Miami, throwing an MLB-best 97 1/3 innings, but a 4.25 ERA and underwhelming 6.6 K/9 isn't exactly ace-like performance.

That doesn't mean Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix is going to back off an understandably high asking price. With the remaining year of team control and his track record, the Fish aren't looking for a salary dump - they're looking to build for the future with a strong return. Even so, maybe it's more about a group of solid, high-upside prospects as opposed to elite blue-chip talent.

But this is a moot point. Chicago needs to better position itself in the NL pecking order. If they just tread water for the next month, I'd be shocked to see Jed Hoyer push chips in on Alcantara (or any other major deadline target, for that matter).

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