The Chicago Cubs made the big splash everyone waits for each year, but the MLB trade rumors market is far from shuttered.
Call the Cubs wrangling Aroldis Chapman from the New York Yankees, according to Jon Heyman of Today's Knuckleball, more of an appetizer than anything.
Why? The rumors market hasn't slowed, and in an environment where the Cubs act as buyers and the Yankees sellers, anything seems possible. With the majority of the league angling for improvement now or in the long run, it makes for a juicy stew.
Here's a taste of what might come next based on the latest rumblings out of the rumors department.
Jay Bruce
The Cincinnati Reds are obvious sellers. The team with a mismanaged shot at competing now looks to salvage assets from its notable talent.
Cincinnati sits at 39-61, a good 20.5 games out of first place in the National League Central, a division dominated the right way by those Cubs. One of the first major selling points out of the Queen City seems obvious—Jay Bruce.
ESPN's Jerry Crasnick revealed the Reds are well on the way to shipping him away:
A high-profile prospect is the only way for the Reds to go. The team isn't competing anytime soon, so boosting the system and thinking of the future makes sense, especially with Cincinnati likely being unable to keep Bruce around once he hits free agency next offseason.
His heading to free agency makes the asking price tricky, though. Now 29 years old, Bruce would usually require a ton of assets. He's refurbished his career a tad this season, averaging .271 at the plate with 24 homers and 78 RBI. He averaged .226 or worse in each of the past two seasons.
A contender won't mind giving up what it takes to get a slugger like Bruce right now, though the contender that believes it can keep him around a long time will offer even more. It's hard to imagine the potential bidding war remains limited to four teams.
Dodgers' Pursuit of Chris Sale
How badly do the Los Angeles Dodgers want to acquire the Chicago White Sox's Chris Sale?
The desperation is bad enough to float coveted prospect Julio Urias out there.
Los Angeles whiffed last year, refusing to give up whatever it took to land Cole Hamels. Fine, but when you add in the loss of Zack Greinke, Clayton Kershaw looks pretty lonely when healthy.
This year the Dodgers seem ready to learn from their mistakes. They're apparently willing to go all the way to land Sale, should he become available, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
"But I have heard if that changes, the Dodgers would be more aggressive with Sale than they were with Hamels, up to including top prospect, lefty Julio Urias, to front a strong package. The Dodgers would not include Urias for Hamels last July," Sherman wrote.
Sale is worth the steep cost. He's under team control through 2019 and all of 27 years old, boasting a 3.18 ERA with 129 strikeouts and a 14-3 record. Urias doesn't compare stat-wise (4.69 ERA over nine appearances), but he's 19 years old with tremendous upside.
There are layers to this willingness by the Dodgers. Kershaw remains on the shelf with a back issue and isn't a sure thing after 2018 thanks to contractual options. Maybe the Dodgers land Sale but Kershaw doesn't return this year—that's disappointing, but next season would looks great.
This hinges on Chicago's willingness to cut Sale loose. With how serious the Dodgers seem about not striking out two deadlines in a row, the likelihood of this coming to fruition seems a little better.
Yankees Still Selling?
It's an odd world when the Yankees act as sellers, but so it goes for a 52-48 team that sits fourth in the American League East, 6.5 games off the pace.
With Chapman gone, it sounds like the brass in New York mean to move Ivan Nova, who the team has "been pushing" in conversations for a while now, according to ESPN's Buster Olney.
Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News spoke with a source about the Yankees' plan: "They're focused on him. They're looking at the guys with expiring contracts first—though not Beltran right now."
Perhaps most interesting, though, is the revelation the Yankees seem to want a lot in return for the 29-year-old starter.
"They're shooting high, but it's early," the source said, per Feinsand. "They know what the pitching market looks like right now and they're trying to capitalize on that."
It's true the market for starters is quite rough. Is it enough to mitigate Nova's issues? It's tough to say. He's sitting on a 4.65 ERA, 72 strikeouts and a 7-5 record. A team in need of a back-end rotational guy might come calling, but New York's high asking price makes for a sticky situation.
If the Yankees and a buyer can find common ground, the latter would get a low-risk player who hits free agency in the offseason. If Nova strengthens a lineup, it's hard to complain.
Kudos to the Yankees for seeing a market, admitting their flaws this year and going after it.
All stats and info via ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.
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