As we noted earlier, the Chicago Cubs have two primary directives remaining in the offseason: get a fourth outfielder, and get a veteran reliever.
To the latter directive, a new name has surfaced. According to Bruce Levine, the Cubs are taking a look at San Diego Padres reliever Luke Gregerson. Gregerson, 25, was very good in his rookie year with the Padres, putting up a 3.24 ERA in 75 innings, while striking out 93 and walking just 31. You could understand why the Cubs would be interested, despite Gregerson not being, you know, a veteran.
But that said, why would the Padres trade him? He’s on a renewable (read: uber cheap) contract for the next two years, and then he’ll hit arbitration for three years. The Padres, a team with a limited budget, should want a guy like Gregerson even more than the Cubs. That means to acquire him, the Cubs would have to give up some serious talent.