Cubs Rumors: Dansby Swanson kept Jed Hoyer from selling
Just a few weeks prior to the MLB trade deadline, the Chicago Cubs looked like surefire sellers, and it was tough to blame Jed Hoyer and Co. Chicago sat 7.5 games back in the NL Central and 6.5 games back in the NL Wild Card race as of early June.
Yet, Hoyer offered Cubs veteran leader Dansby Swanson, as well as manager David Ross, something he failed to provide in past seasons — time. And with that time, Swanson and Co. flipped the script, keeping a consistent dialogue with Hoyer and the front office, as well.
"My thing was, you can't just turn it on and off, when you want to win," Swanson said, per The Athletic. "If we want to be good, the expectation needs to be that we're going to win. Just because it's not going purely as planned this year, you get to a deadline, (you can't just say) we're done with the year."
As Swanson expressed, how is any team supposed to build momentum year over year if the front office trades away any and all assets each July?
"The message still has to be to everyone that the expectation is this," Swanson continued. "I just kind of said now is a real important moment in culture setting. If we want to be winners here, we can't just say, 'All right, we're going to turn our winner mindset on next year when we feel like we have everything right.' No. The winning mindset stays at all times."
Eventually, Hoyer bought in because of the results on the field. But Chicago had to make him believe.
Cubs Rumors: Updated prospect rankings for the next generation
MLB Pipeline released their latest prospect rankings, which include this year's draft class. Chicago features five players in MLB Pipeline's top-100, including Pete Crow-Armstrong, Cade Horton, Owen Cassie, Kevin Alcantara and Ben Brown. The Cubs farm system is one of the best in baseball, which should make for a nice pairing with a rapidly-improving major-league product in the years to come.
Horton is arguably the biggest leap here, as the former slugger turned right-handed pitcher has flown up Chicago's prospect ranks, pitching in A-ball, A+ and now Double-A. He has thrived everywhere he has gone, including in Double-A, where he has an ERA of 2.25 in two starts. It's early, but Horton isn't expected to make his big-league debut until 2025 as he adjusts to pitching at different MiLB levels.
In a piece by Zach Buchanan of The Athletic in June, a scout diagnosed Horton in particular:
"What I saw out of him was pretty impressive. He's a sturdy-built right-hander who has the frame and size and foundation to continue in a starting role…You're talking about two plus pitches and a curve he doesn't throw often but can land for a strike. So that's three potential plus pitches in his arsenal. For a Cubs system that has struggled to develop major-league starters over the last decade, this might give you a glimmer of hope that they have something that can be a foundational piece in the rotation for years to come."
All five Cubs top-100 prospects have a chance to be stars, but Horton's story is unique. From third baseman at Oklahoma to top-30 pitching prospect, Chicago's 2022 first-round pick has a chance to lead their rotation in a few short years.
Cubs Rumors: Javy Baez trade looks even worse now
At the 2021 MLB trade deadline, the Chicago Cubs traded beloved shortstop Javier Baez to the New York Mets. At the time, it was thought Baez would help put New York over the top, as he was paired with Francisco Lindor in a star-studded infield. Yet, that was not meant to be.
Baez played relatively well during his time in Queens. However, he was there for only half a season before signing with the Detroit Tigers as a free agent. That's a story for a different day. Yet, the Cubs return in the Baez trade continues to make this a nightmare scenario for New York.
Baez slashed .299/.371/.515 with the Mets, good for an .886 OPS. He rediscovered himself after struggling in Chicago, and was able to turn that successful half-season statistically into his current contract, which is an albatross from the Detroit Tigers perspective. Trevor Williams spent 1.5 seasons in New York. His 3.06 ERA in 2021 was key out of the Mets bullpen. In 2022, he saw similar success as a part-time starter.
On the surface, that doesn't look too bad from the Mets perspective. Yet, sending Pete Crow-Armstrong — then their fifth-ranked prospect — back to Chicago was a huge mistake. PCA now ranks as the No. 12 overall prospect in baseball, and is likely to make his MLB debut in 2024. He's an elite defensive player, and offers speed on the basepaths. If the Cubs are lucky, he is their center fielder of the future.
Crow-Armstrong was recently promoted to Triple-A Iowa, where he's going through a bit of a learning curve, as is custom. But assuming he makes the right adjustments, this could be a trade the mets regret for years to come.
