THIS IS WHAT A NIGHT AT THE WINTER MEETINGS IS SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE. After a long day of stray rumors, things started to get hot later in the day, with word about specific Cubs meetings (including Carlos Correa today). And then Mark Feinsand reported the big one, that there is a “scenario” where the Cubs could sign BOTH Xander Bogaerts and Dansby Swanson.
Now, we get word that the Cubs are among the teams talking with the A’s about a Sean Murphy trade:
Maybe the Cubs were the Mystery Team all along!
Murphy, 27, is expected to be traded soon by an A’s team that wants to maximize the value of the Gold Glove catcher while they can. He is among the best catchers in all of baseball, excellent defensively and offensively, so you would LOVE to see the Cubs acquire him. The price tag, though, well, you wouldn’t be happy about it. Guys like Murphy cost an arm and a leg, and you would have to say that no one in the entire system – or even on the big league roster – would be entirely off limits. That’s just the way these kinds of trades work.
… but then I start thinking about the Cubs adding Murphy, Swanson, and Bogaerts, and I just JUMP OUT OF MY SEAT.
A little caution on this one, though: the Cubs have been heavily connected to Christian Vazquez, whose market is big, and whose demands may also be big. It’s always possible the Cubs are merely investigating alternatives so they can show optionality to Vazquez. We also know the Cardinals have been connected to Murphy, so you never know whether the Cubs are just checking in to try to get a little info or apply a little pressure to the Cardinals to go over the top.