Tonight is reclamation night – which is not a bad thing! Other moves can come whenever! – as there’s another formerly-great, currently-not bat in which the Cubs have interest.
We’ve heard this connection before, as the Cubs were interested in Dominic Smith earlier this year:
Smith, 27, raked in abbreviated stints for the Mets in 2019 and 2020, but hit just .233/.298/.345/82 wRC+ the last two seasons combined, as the contact quality evaporated.
But on a minor league deal? A Spring Training chance to make the team and work with his first new organization (like Bellinger)? There’s no real risk or cost there, so I say why not? The Cubs want and need something of a placeholder first base option so that Matt Mervis doesn’t have to be rushed, and it’s not IMPOSSIBLE to imagine Smith, a lefty, being serviceable enough in part-time duty (with Patrick Wisdom getting the non-Smith starts? if the Cubs added someone else at third base, for example?).
Smith has played in the outfield in addition to first base, by the way, though he has never rated all that well out there. Still, a little versatility is always nice, just in case.
We’ll dig in more on the bounce-back potential here if things get serious, but I think for now it’s fair enough to say that if this is a low-risk chance – not precluding any other moves – I have no problem with it.
Obviously the Cubs could not plan to sell Smith (or Bellinger) as the big-time bat additions they very much need this offseason, however. Just sayin’.