Cubs trade watch is officially on as hot stove heats up at Winter Meetings

The Chicago Cubs have yet to get on the board with a move at the Winter Meetings, but that could change very soon. The second day of the offseason's tentpole event has been eventful with Kyle Schwarber returning to the Philadelphia Phillies and Edwin Diaz signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but ESPN's Jesse Rogers teased that the floodgates could be getting ready to open.

Providing an update on the trade market, the MLB insider suggested that the Cubs, Boston Red Sox, and San Diego Padres are coming up in conversations of teams who might be closing in on making a deal.

As was the case at the MLB trade deadline, there's no shortage of trade targets for the Cubs to pursue this offseason. Edward Cabrera of the Miami Marlins and MacKenzie Gore of the Washington Nationals are likely at the top of their wish list, assuming the Minnesota Twins actually are planning on holding onto Joe Ryan this offseason.

Cubs Rumors: A trade could be on the horizon as Jed Hoyer looks to address pitching need.

While the impression has been that the Cubs are willing to spend beyond their comfort zone in the free-agent market to add a top-of-the-rotation arm, the trade market has always felt like the preferred method for Jed Hoyer. Whether it's Gore or Cabrera, either starter would arrive with multiple years of control while still going through the arbitration process.

Gore has two more years of control, while Cabrera has three more years of control. What the Cubs would be saving financially by not adding a top free-agent starter like Tatsuya Imai would likely be negated by the fact that such a trade would deplete the top of their farm system.

Cabrera and Gore were two pitchers the Cubs were interested in at the deadline, but they weren't willing to match an asking price that included Owen Caissie, Cade Horton, and Matt Shaw. Of those three, the Cubs likely are still against the idea of trading Horton, but if they have their wish, they probably would prefer to keep Caissie and Shaw as well. Such a scenario shouldn't be viewed as the likeliest, considering the years of control that would come with each pitcher.

Though in an offseason with Alex Bregman, Eugenio Suárez, and Munetaka Murakami all available in free agency, Shaw may not be as untouchable as he was at the deadline.

Cubs fans are getting antsy, and rightfully so; they've been down the path of unfulfilled promises before. Hopefully, in the coming hours, if not days, that feeling goes away.