NEWSLETTER
At first, thoughts about the San Diego Padres trading Juan Soto were purely speculative, and became increasingly likely as more information came out about their financial plans.
At first, thoughts about the Chicago Cubs pursuing a Juan Soto trade were purely speculative, and became increasingly likely as we heard more behind the scenes. Indeed, Michael reported specifically that the Cubs were sincerely interested in pursuing a trade for Soto.
Now, you can add further confirmation onto the beautiful pile:
Although that is not, strictly speaking, new to us, I always like hearing the same thing from multiple sources. Bruce Levine reports that the Cubs will be “involved” in the trade talks surrounding Soto, and even dips his toe in the acquisition cost waters:
“What would the Cubs need to give up to get Soto? Numerous opposing teams have asked about 24-year-old utilityman Christopher Morel, who hit 26 homers and posted an .821 OPS in 107 games in 2023. Morel is under team control through 2028 and isn’t arbitration-eligible until the 2026 season. The Padres are high on Morel, sources said.”
Morel has long been a speculated trade candidate, given the perceived value he could offer other clubs that he cannot currently offer the Cubs (i.e., the ability to play solid defense at second base and stick at second base). All else equal, I’d still like the Cubs to try to give Morel an offseason of DEDICATED work at third base to see if he can make a go of it there – the bat still has so much upside – but if he becomes a highly desirable trade candidate, I’d understand the Cubs having to explore their options.
Realistically, I don’t know that you’d get Juan Soto for Christopher Morel straight up, even though the latter comes with a number of years of cheap team control and the former is under control for just one expensive year. Soto is one of the best few bats in all of baseball, and the competition for his services – if the Padres really start shopping him – will be fierce. Still, it’s quite interesting to see Morel directly name-checked in connection to the Padres.
Levine goes on to note the quality depth in the Cubs’ farm system, which will indeed be a factor in these talks (it not only makes the Cubs more able to absorb the hit that the farm system might take, but it also means they have many more options for the Padres to choose from, in terms of their preferences).
That said, I didn’t love this concluding comment from Levine: “There’s also a thought around MLB that the Padres will absorb part of Soto’s salary in 2024 if they receive enough young talent in return.”
I do not want to see the Cubs giving up a bunch of extra talent to have the Padres eat some of JUAN SOTO’s salary. An extra redundant prospect or two in areas where the stateside roster limits (or Rule 5 Draft eligibility) are leaving you squeezed? OK. Maybe. But do not trade away premium prospects for cash.
More from Levine here. More of our thoughts on the Cubs-Soto fit here.
And now you may go off into your Friday afternoon bliss, imagining a 2024 Cubs lineup anchored by Juan Soto in the middle …
