Understanding why the Chicago Cubs will be strong contenders in 2024

Understanding why the Cubs will contend in 2024 - Prospect trade packages

After the Cubs locked up Ian Happ for three more years, it didn't just give the Cubs another piece to their core that is sticking around; it opened the floodgates for potential trades moving forward. Revisiting the current Cubs Top 30 prospect list, It's now eye-opening that five of the Cubs' top eight hitters are outfielders. With only Center Field vacant moving forward (assuming Bellinger doesn't stick around), doing the math becomes relatively easy when you think about what that means.

The Cubs need an everyday center fielder once Bellinger is gone, followed by one more of those top five outfielders to pan out, and they have three top prospects they can quickly flip to help the big league team address its biggest needs. Of course, the Jed Hoyer Regime probably will only deplete its newly put-together farm system overnight; there is still no reason to believe he will block his most valuable players if they can contribute at the major league level. At least one or two should be moved at some point. For example, putting a package together that consists of Kevin Alcantara and Brennen Davis as a starting point will get teams listening.