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MLB Trade Rumors: 5 teams who should target Chris Archer

By Joshua Sadlock

NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 13: Chris Archer #22 of the Tampa Bay Rays in action against the New York Yankees at Citi Field on September 13, 2017 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. The Yankees defeated the Rays 3-2. The two teams were scheduled to play in St. Petersburg, Florida but due to the weather emergency caused by Hurricane Irma, the game was moved to New York, but with Tampa Bay remaining the 'home' team. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 13: Chris Archer #22 of the Tampa Bay Rays in action against the New York Yankees at Citi Field on September 13, 2017 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. The Yankees defeated the Rays 3-2. The two teams were scheduled to play in St. Petersburg, Florida but due to the weather emergency caused by Hurricane Irma, the game was moved to New York, but with Tampa Bay remaining the 'home' team. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /
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LOS ANGELES, CA – OCTOBER 15: Jon Lester #34 of the Chicago Cubs is taken out of the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the fifth inning during Game Two of the National League Championship Series at Dodger Stadium on October 15, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA – OCTOBER 15: Jon Lester #34 of the Chicago Cubs is taken out of the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the fifth inning during Game Two of the National League Championship Series at Dodger Stadium on October 15, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

1. Chicago Cubs

Before he broke through with the Rays, Chris Archer was a prospect in the Chicago Cubs farm system. Archer moved to the Tampa Bay organization in 2011 in exchange for a package headlined by Matt Garza. He never pitched above Double-A for the Cubs, but did go 15-3 in 2010 with a 2.34 ERA in the minor leagues.

Now, seven years removed from being traded by the Cubs, Archer could find himself finally pitching in the friendly confines of Wrigley Field.

The Cubs have exactly what the Rays should be looking for as they continue to shop their most valuable trade chip. With a depth chart overflowing with young talent at key positions, the Cubs are the perfect trade partner for the Rays. For all their developmental wins with starting pitchers like Archer, David Price, James Shields and Alex Cobb, Tampa Bay has struggled mightily to create a pipeline of hitters from the draft to the big leagues. Evan Longoria remains the only homegrown position player to become a consistent All-Star in the 20 seasons that the franchise has been in existence.

Any one of Albert Almora, Javy Baez, Addison Russell, Ian Happ or — God forbid — Kyle Schwarber could be used to build a package to trade for Archer. The Cubs have exhausted most of their high-level prospects in trades for Aroldis Chapman and Jose Quintana, but their depth at the MLB level still affords them the ability to make blockbuster trades.

Next: Top 10 remaining offseason trade candidates

Chicago needs a starting pitcher to round out their rotation behind Kyle Hendricks and Jon Lester, and Archer is an ideal fit — young, cheap and under team control for the foreseeable future. If Theo Epstein wants to get really crazy with the Rays, he could sweeten his offer and try to bring back closer Alex Colome to fill his hole in the ninth inning.

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