Latest MLB Trade Deadline rumor highlights importance of Cubs series against Mets

The Chicago Cubs are set to open a three-game series against the New York Mets on Friday. The series could impact the direction each team takes at the MLB Trade Deadline next month.

For much of the season, many Cubs fans have circled the Mets as the team to keep an eye on in terms of a potential trade partner for the North Siders. Not only do the Mets have slugging first baseman Pete Alonso as an ideal fit for the Cubs' power need, Reed Garrett could be an answer for their need in the bullpen.

The issue for the Cubs is that as they have struggled over the course of the past 50 games, the Mets have gotten hot including winning 8 of their last 10 games. The Mets, like the Cubs, are only a game out of the final National League Wild Card spot.

The recent hot stretch for the Mets has made it plausible that the team may hold onto Alonso, but in his latest preview of the MLB Trade Deadline, Jesse Rogers of ESPN has New York among the teams that are "likely to subtract". For the Cubs, they fell in the "on the fence" category.

The Cubs could help themselves in a big way this weekend.

Looking beyond the fact that the Cubs need to start stacking victories after taking two-of-three from the San Francisco Giants earlier this week, they can do themselves a huge favor this weekend by winning the series against the Mets and pushing New York closer to selling at the deadline.

Alonso remains near the top of the list as a trade candidate who is likely but also a perfect fit for the Cubs' needs. The Cubs have been coveting Alonso since the Trade Deadline last season, and ending the Mets' momentum this weekend may inch them closer to finally landing their impact bat.