The Chicago Cubs already have a great team with one of the most dynamic offenses in Major League Baseball.
However, the Cubs could use an upgrade at third base. Rookie Matt Shaw has looked great defensively, but the bat hasn’t caught up just yet.
Shaw, 23, struggled to begin the season and was sent down to make adjustments in Triple-A Iowa.
He was recalled on May 19 and went on a brief tear, slashing .359/.419/.487 with five doubles in 11 May games.
Since June 1 though, Shaw has just 17 hits in his last 110 at-bats.
While Shaw is the long-term solution at the hot corner, the Cubs need to look at upgrading the position to make a deep playoff run in what could be Kyle Tucker’s only season in Chicago.
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FanSided’s Christopher Kline listed three trade ideas that would make the Cubs trade deadline winners, with the No.1 player being a two-time All-Star third baseman.
Arizona Diamondbacks slugger Eugenio Suárez would be a tremendous addition to the Cubs’ lineup for the second half.
Suárez, 33, would be a rental for this season and the best one at that. He has 31 home runs and 78 RBI while slashing .250/.320/.569 in 95 games.
He wouldn’t be a defensive upgrade, and he strikes out a lot, but his power plays at Wrigley Field and would add so much pop to the middle of the order.
“Suárez as the cleanup bat behind Tucker and PCA is quite the tantalizing thought,” wrote Kline. “The Diamondbacks are another team close enough to the Wild Card race to hesitate when it comes to selling off major pieces, but Arizona's injury-battered rotation and the steep hill to climb in the NL West will probably steer them toward a reset.”
It shouldn’t take much for the Cubs to pry Suárez away from Arizona, despite their reluctance to sell this year.
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