Despite having one of the best offenses in Major League Baseball, third base continues to be a black hole for the Chicago Cubs.
After losing out in the Alex Bregman sweepstakes, the Cubs went into the season with rookie Matt Shaw manning the hot corner, but the 22-year-old was demoted after just 18 dismal games. Shaw was recalled a month later and has shown some signs of life, but he is still the only Cubs regular with an OPS below league-average. Factor in the woeful performances of Jon Berti, Vidal Bruján and Gage Workman and Cubs third basemen have produced a league-worst .562 OPS.
Of course, the Cubs' offense has been able to weather the growing pains of Shaw, ranking second in the major leagues in runs scored, and upgrading the starting rotation and bullpen remains a much bigger priority. However, the presence of slugger Eugenio Suárez, who ranks second in the National League with 36 home runs, on the trade market could prove tempting, as adding him to an order that already includes sluggers Seiya Suzuki, Kyle Tucker, Michael Busch and Pete Crow-Armstrong could create one of the most fearsome lineups in recent memory.
With a farm system that currently features five of MLB Pipeline’s top 100 prospects, the Cubs certainly have enough to line up with the Diamondbacks on the deal, but The Athletic’s Jim Bowden believes that the Cubs wouldn’t have to dip too far into their reserve to acquire Suárez's services.
“The Cubs should be able to land Suárez in a straight-up for pitching prospect Jaxon Wiggins, who was a second-round pick in 2023,” wrote Bowden.
Though Wiggins is only the fifth-ranked prospect in the Cubs system, Wiggins could be appealing for a Diamondbacks team looking to upgrade their woeful pitching staff. The 23-year-old has posted a 2.02 in 14 appearances this year between High-A and Double-A, racking up 79 strikeouts against just 28 walks and holding batters to a .151 batting average. Though his command remains a work in progress, the six-foot-six-inch right-hander has both the size and the stuff to be a mid-rotation starter, which would be a great get for a Diamondbacks team that has already lost Corbin Burnes to Tommy John surgery and is set to lose Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly in free agency.
If Wiggins alone isn’t enough to get the deal done, Bowden believes the Cubs could seal the deal by including outfielder Kevin Alcantara, who is currently MLB Pipeline’s 78th-ranked prospect. The 23-year-old outfielder has homered 11 times and posted an .806 OPS in Triple-A but has no clear future in a Cubs outfield that features Ian Happ, Suzuki, Tucker and Crow-Armstrong.
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