Cubs: 3 players on the trading block this offseason

Cubs could sell high on Kyle Hendricks

The Cubs are horrible. We need to stress that point.

How, then, is Hendricks 14-5 on the season? It doesn’t make any damn sense, other than the fact that Hendrick is in fact really good at baseball and deserves to be playing for a contender. If the Cubs don’t opt-in to that role for him, then they ought to do the 31-year-old a favor and trade him somewhere that prioritizes winning.

Entering the final seasons of his prime, Hendricks is running out of chances to have a real influence on a World Series contender, and the Cubs could get a nice haul in return as well given he’s signed through 2024.

Cubs have to clear out crowded under-achieving outfield

It’s easier said than done, but the Cubs need to do something about their outfield. The likes of Jason Heyward and Ian Happ are making way too much money to hit under the Mendoza line.

Heyward remains a capable defender in right field, but his contract which runs through 2024 is a damn albatross. Good luck getting any team to take that on. Happ, meanwhile, is a little more affordable and perhaps can be dealt, as he’s only arbitration eligible.

Chicago will want to get younger in the outfield, and see some new faces patrolling Wrigley. Happ and Heyward are most certainly not the future.