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The narrative surrounding the Chicago Cubs' approach at the Major League Baseball Deadline appears to be shifting.
In recent weeks, the growing consensus among national insiders was that the Cubs were going to be sellers at the deadline. The Cubs, plagued with inconsistent play, were in a position to capitalize on a seller's market as they held two of the most coveted trade chips on the market in starting pitcher Marcus Stroman and center fielder Cody Bellinger.
The Cubs have since won 7 of their last 10 games and enter play on Monday with a record of 49-51 and only 6 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers for first place in the National League Central division.
The Cubs appear to be in the middle of the run that the front office was hoping for leading up to the deadline and we are beginning to see the narrative around the team's decision at the deadline shift.
MLB Network insider Jon Morosi reported on Wednesday morning that the Miami Marlins were one of the teams interested in Bellinger but the Cubs may no longer be looking to move the center fielder.
The Marlins are among the teams looking at Cody Bellinger, but a funny thing has happened on the way to the trade deadline:
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 26, 2023
The Cubs have a better chance of reaching the postseason than the Marlins, per the latest @baseball_ref projection. @MLBNetwork @WatchMarquee
Bellinger is a large part of the reason why the narrative surrounding the Cubs may be changing as the center fielder has been an anchor for the team's offense during the month of July.
We are under a week until the deadline on August 1 and it remains to be seen exactly what the Cubs will do.
Once believed to be sellers, the idea of moving Stroman and Bellinger may now be a tough sell for Jed Hoyer to make when he presumably meets with reporters after the deadline next Tuesday.
The Cubs have five games between now and the deadline and they are all favorable with it being one more game against the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday followed by a four-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals. The path for the Cubs to remain on their run is there and that could be the reason why the team has a new approach at the deadline.