New York Mets' first baseman Pete Alonso has been an oft-rumored target for the Chicago Cubs since last season's MLB Trade Deadline.
The Cubs and Mets had preliminary discussions regarding Alonso last summer, with there being an anticipation that the two sides would continue the conversations this off-season.
While there was some talk early in the off-season that the Mets wanted Christopher Morel in a potential deal for Alonso, trade talks never materialized between the two teams as new Mets' president David Stearns committed to the veteran slugger as the team's Opening Day first baseman.
The Mets and Alonso are not expected to negotiate contracts ahead of the first baseman reaching free agency after the season. This leads to speculation that the Cubs may once again circle with interest at this season's deadline.
It's also important to understand what that would mean for the team acquiring Alonso. The team would only have two month's worth of production from the prolific power hitter and given the depreciation value on rental bats at the deadline, the price that the Cubs would have had to pay during this off-season is not nearly the price that they will have to pay at the deadline.
That would be the reason why the trade proposal submitted by Rachael Millanta is the epitome of being out-of-town stupid.
This is not a Pete Alonso trade that the Chicago Cubs will ever make.
The suggested trade has the Cubs giving up, arguably, their top prospect in Cade Horton, another Top-50 prospect in Michael Busch, and a left-handed starting pitcher in Jordan Wicks, who was an organizational Top-10 prospect last season before making his debut.
There is no scenario where the Cubs make this deal...ever. What's also forgotten in that proposal is that the Cubs believe that Busch will be the long-term answer at first base. If that belief becomes a reality this season, it would be a fireable offense for Jed Hoyer to make this trade given the cost-certainty they would have in Busch without meeting the lofty contract demands that Alonso would have next off-season. Not to mention the fireable offense that it would be to give up the Major League team's future ace for a rental bat.