2025 Chicago Cubs Look Elite—So Let's Make Some Fake Trades
The North Siders are really good, at Wrigley Field, but really good usually isn't enough. So it's time to stir things up, and our MLB guru Matt Musico tells us how they can do just that.
IT’S OFFICIALLY JULY, which means we’re less than one month away from the July 31 trade deadline, and for the Chicago Cubs, they’re in a solid spot. As of this writing, they’re one of three National League teams with 50 wins and have continued to hold onto first place in the NL Central.
Any potential rumors/thoughts about Chicago selling is far from the minds of many. Instead, we’re talking about Jed Hoyer and Co. trying to add to the roster so the Cubs can finish the regular season strong and participate in October baseball for the first time since 2020.
What will be Chicago’s focus when it comes to supplementing the roster? While starter Shota Imanaga has recently returned from his lengthy stay on the injured list (good), the club is still without fellow starter Justin Steele, who won’t be back this season (bad). Between this and the fact that a contending club can never have enough pitching—just look at what the Dodgers have gone through this year—you’d have to imagine that will be at the top of the front office’s wish list.
ESPN’s Jesse Rogers reported on July 1 that Hoyer is searching for pitching depth and has been engaged in conversations with opposing teams. Now, searching for “depth” can mean many things, and there are plenty of hypothetical trade packages floating around on the internet to reflect that.
Let’s go over three I’ve seen from various sources in recent weeks that are interesting for different reasons (All team prospect rankings via MLB.com).
HERE’S AN “OUTRAGEOUS” trade proposal put together by Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller:
Chicago Cubs Receive:
RHP Sandy Alcantara
RHP Edward Cabrera
Miami Marlins Receive:
OF Kevin Alcántara (#4 prospect)
IF Jefferson Rojas (#3 prospect)
RHP Jaxon Wiggins (#8 prospect)
RHP Ryan Gallagher (#17 prospect)
IF Yahil Melendez (#24 prospect)
This feels like a huge package, especially since it includes three top-ten players—and especially since Alcantara has had a rough season. But he’s still coming off Tommy John surgery and is a former Cy Young Award winner who won’t be a free agent until 2027, so even with the terrible performance, he’ll likely be a popular target. Cabrera is having a solid year (3.41 ERA through 71.1 innings) and won’t be a free agent until 2029.
You give up a lot of prospects, but also get multiple years of control of young hurlers.
BLEACHER REPORT’S Joel Rueter just came up with this hypothetical swap on July 1:
Chicago Cubs Receive:
RHP Drew Rasmussen
Tampa Bay Rays receive:
OF Owen Caissie (#1 prospect)
SS Jefferson Rojas (#3 prospect)
RHP Nazier Mulé
The Rays are in the thick of playoff contention, so why would they trade Rasmussen away? Because it’s Tampa Bay—they go against the grain when they feel like it’s necessary. And if Caissie is on the table in negotiations, it might make sense for them.
Rasmussen owns a 2.78 ERA and 1.00 WHIP with 74 strikeouts through 87.1 innings this season. The right-hander also isn’t a rental, which is why Caissie and Rojas are included in this fake proposal. He’s signed through 2026 on an $8.5 million deal that also includes a team option in 2027.
THIS HYPOTHETICAL swap put together by Athlon Sports’ Sam Bernaardi is especially interesting:
Chicago Cubs receive:
RHP Seth Lugo
Kansas City Royals receive:
OF Kevin Alcántara (#4 prospect)
RHP Jack Neely (#15 prospect)
After reaching the playoffs in 2024, the Royals have disappointed thus far in 2025 and could look to offload some contracts. Lugo is only signed through 2025, but also has a player option available for the 2026 season. He finished second in American League Cy Young voting last season and has twirled a 2.74 ERA with a 1.08 WHIP and 76 strikeouts in 88.2 innings.
There are plenty more trade proposals out there circling in the rumor mill, but out of these three, the one that seems most realistic to me is the Cubs-Royals swap.
The potential Marlins deal makes sense, but that’s a lot of prospect capital going back to Miami, something I don’t see Hoyer being comfortable with.
The Tampa Bay one feels weird because the Rays are competing, so that leaves the final one.
Kansas City could be a seller at the deadline, especially for someone like Lugo, who may be a free agent this winter anyway.
As much as we’d like to get some answers right now, we’ll likely have to hold on until closer to the deadline. Rogers noted in his report the Cubs could be in “wait-and-see” mode, so you know what that means: Plenty more fake proposals to keep us busy until then.
Veteran baseball writer Matt Musico is the Founder and Editor of MLB Daily Dingers. Visit him here on Twitter.