Chicago Cubs Rumors: Jed Hoyer addresses MLB Trade Deadline status

Despite the sense that the Chicago Cubs' poor play during the month of May has shifted them to being sellers at the Major League Baseball trade deadline on August 1, team president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer is not ready to make that designation.

Hoyer was asked by reporters on Tuesday, ahead of the Cubs' 7-4 loss to the Los Angeles Angels, about when he would know whether the team will be sellers or buyers at the deadline.

“End of July,” Hoyer said. “I’d love to know sooner. I’d love to rattle off a long winning streak and feel like, OK, all these questions are not going to be asked anymore. That would be the hope. Certainly, we’re not going to make any decisions early. Listen, we had a really good month, and we had a really bad month. We need to play well. The frustrating thing is that we just haven’t been able to rattle off win streaks.”

For as much as Hoyer may want to wait until the end of July, the market may not afford him that time. There is going to be a shortage of sellers at this season's trade deadline and that could put the Cubs in a prime position to take advantage. That may not be what Cubs fans want to hear but that is the situation the team finds themselves in after a disappointing month of May.

The Major League Baseball trade market may force the Chicago Cubs to be sellers at the trade deadline.

That also puts the Cubs in a position where they may have the best trade chip on the market in starting pitcher Marcus Stroman. Teams that are buying and in the market for starting pitchers are inclined to make a deal sooner as opposed to at the deadline in order to get an extra start or two out of the starting pitcher that they are acquiring.

For the Cubs and Hoyer, that likely means a decision is made at the beginning of July as opposed to Hoyer's wish of at the end of July.

More Chicago Cubs News