By Jordan Long
The Major League Baseball trade deadline is on July 31st. The Chicago Cubs stand at 54-45, 2 games ahead of the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Central division. Rumors are swirling that the Cubs may land a few players who they hope could help them win the division.
One of them might be pitcher Shane Greene. Greene is the closer for the Detroit Tigers. He has been outstanding for the Tigers this season. Greene has saved 22 games but has blown 3 with an ERA of 1.25. His record is 0-2. When Detroit calls on him to save a game, he will usually deliver and strike batters out with a total of 40.
The only problem with him is his pitching location. He takes risks throwing the ball in the middle of the strike zone where hitters can smack them for extra base hits. Batters are patient and that forces him to work the count which can lead to walks. Those walks add traffic to the base paths. Greene has given up 5 home runs and 11 walks.
The Cubs are interested in him because the bullpen isn’t as strong as it has been in the past. Chicago closer Craig Kimbrel totaled 6 saves this year but has one blown save with an ERA of 5.19. The Cubs total ERA for their relievers is 4.20, 11th in baseball.
The Cubs could use another arm. Greene makes sense. He would improve the bullpen. They already have the closer in Kimbrel. If they acquire him, it might be he is the set-up man for Kimbrel. There is the opportunity if Kimbrel struggles, Greene would have his chance to be the closer. This is one pitcher the Cubs should trade for because it makes the bullpen stronger.
A position player Chicago is looking at is Nicholas Castellanos. He is the right fielder for the Detroit Tigers. Castellanos is going to be a free agent at the end of the year and this would be a rental player for the Cubs.
Castellanos is not a power hitter. He is hitting .283 with 10 home runs and 35 RBI’s for the Tigers. The best part of his hitting is extra base hits. Castellanos hits the ball into the gap in the outfield. When that happens, he uses his speed to run to 2nd or 3rd base. Castellanos has 34 doubles and 3 triples. Those would help the Cubs in tight games.
Castellanos is trusted to play right field on defense for the Tigers. He rarely drops the ball or allows a baseball to get by him when he dives for it. Castellanos totaled 2 errors this year. He has a strong arm to throw out base runners advancing with 3 outfield assists.
The Cubs have the outfield set with Kyle Schwarber in left, Albert Almora in center, and Jason Heyward in right field. If the Cubs acquire Castellanos, Almora would be the one to sit on the bench. Castellanos has a stronger arm and can play the outfield better than Almora. Almora would still be called upon to play in later innings or pitch hit.
These are a couple of the players the Cubs are looking at. It may be Chicago doesn’t trade for either of them and goes after somebody else. The Cubs will take their time to find players who increase their chances of making a deep run in the postseason this year.
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