Hunter Greene trade buzz comes with one obvious problem for the Cubs

With less than two weeks until the MLB trade deadline, there's still a lot of uncertainty. Neither the American nor the National League has more than three or four teams that can be truly considered out of the Wild Card race, meaning the number of sellers this year could be few and prices could be high. For the Chicago Cubs, it's looking like another year where finding that true, top-of-the-rotation starter might not be possible without getting very uncomfortable.

It hasn't helped that the most appealing potential trade partners, like the Red Sox, Twins, and Tigers, have clung on longer than expected or outright turned their seasons around. The chances that Joe Ryan, Sonny Gray, or Tarik Skubal hit the market are looking increasingly slim by the day. Lest you hoped that the Mets would deal Clay Holmes, think again on that front too, as SNY's Chelsea James reported recently that there's mutual interest in an extension. That's not to say there won't be any options, but they'll all be tough to imagine with Jed Hoyer at the helm.

One of the most surprising, but far-fetched, potential targets might be Cincinnati Reds starter Hunter Greene. At first glance, it sounds preposterous that they would deal the fireballer. While he has battled some injury issues, he's fully realized his immense talent to become one of baseball's best starters when healthy, with a 2.76 ERA and 3.37 FIP over the past two years, a high-90s fastball, and a strikeout rate of 10.5 K/9. He's also only 26 and, thanks to a 6-year, $53 million extension, is under control through 2028 with a club option for 2029. Even if the Reds are six games back of a Wild Card right now, he seems like the perfect piece to keep on a young roster hoping to compete.

However, USA Today's Bob Nightengale has Greene among a list of potential deadline movers and, while he ultimately believes the young righty will stay in Cincinnati, there's at least reason to doubt that. He wrote "the Reds are intrigued just to see what they could command on the market" with so few obvious sellers. Greene's controllability and age will make him tantalizing to everyone in need of pitching. Although he's missed most of the year so far thanks to surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow, the upside will be among the highest of anyone who could realistically be moved before August 3.

For multiple reasons, the Cubs aren't likely to land him, though. First, the Reds are merely listening to offers and, according to Nightengale, are "waiting to see if someone blows them away." Godfather offers are rarely the M.O. of this front office under Hoyer for a pitcher that still comes with some warts. More importantly, intra-division trades simply don't happen often, and that's especially true of a star player like Greene. Whatever the hefty cost is for another team, anyone in the Central would likely have to pay an extra premium.

There are few perfect answers for the Chicago Cubs at this deadline

If there is one potential boon to Greene being available, it's that his presence could steer away potential competition for whatever other controllable starters are available at the deadline. Right now, the most obvious candidates the Cubs could look to for help this year and next are Angels pitchers Reid Detmers and Jose Soriano, unless the Giants are willing to budge on a monster deal for Logan Webb. All three are bound to be expensive, though, and both Detmers and Soriano come with a few questions. Not to mention, the Angels are in an odd spot where owner Arte Moreno might not want to let interim GM John Mozeliak ship off the team's two best arms who aren't set to be free agents.

As nice as it would be to land someone who could help both this year and next, a rental may be the only realistic option if prices are absurd. Despite a career-high 5.01 ERA, Freddy Peralta remains the easy answer considering the Craig Counsell connection, but Robbie Ray is also in the middle of a solid year with the Giants and makes sense as another quality innings-eater with upside.

There's a good chance this deadline might not be particularly flashy, but it doesn't absolutely have to be. The Cubs just need to give Counsell more reliable options in the rotation and the bullpen than the injury-ridden hodgepodge they have now. If they can build a staff that can keep their elite offense in games in October and keep Josiah Hartshorn and their other top prospects in the process, that would be a fine outcome, if likely not quite as exciting as fans are hoping for.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow