We’ve been watching the Diamondbacks’ outfield situation pretty closely this offseason, because they (1) are overloaded with lefty bats, and (2) the Cubs would love to add a lefty outfield bat, especially in center field.
It’s been known that the Diamondbacks would eventually trade AT LEAST one of those guys, and preferably for a righty outfield bat. Again, kinda hoped the Cubs could get in on that.
But is this it? Did the Diamondbacks just make their one outfield trade? They’re getting Kyle Lewis:
OK, on first blush, I actually don’t think this is it. And even if it is, I’m not necessarily a big Hummel fan (he’s a part-time catcher and corner outfielder, not a center fielder).
For one thing, Lewis has really fallen off the last couple years, has dealt with multiple knee issues, and may not be the only righty bat the Diamondbacks try to add into their outfield mix.
For another thing, the Diamondbacks are still really crowded in the outfield, and maybe now they look to trade one of these guys for a NON-outfielder:
I’m not sure they’ll move Alek Thomas, but Dominic Fletcher is a guy we’ve talked about a lot as a possible Cubs target, because he’s depth for the Diamondbacks, but on the Cubs he could merit a real shot at winning the center field job.
I think maybe we’ve still got reason to be tracking the Diamondbacks’ outfield.