3 Cubs moves to make after losing out on Carlos Correa
By Mark Powell
Cubs moves to make: Trade for Alejandro Kirk
Chicago missed out on two top catching targets already in Sean Murphy (who was traded to the Braves) and Christian Vazquez (who signed with the Twins). The Cubs need answers at that position, especially after they lost Willson Contreras in the division to the rival St. Louis Cardinals.
An arguable upgrade from Contreras in some ways would be Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk. While Kirk would come at a significant expense, he’s under team control for quite some time and made the AL All-Star team just last season. Cubbies Crib’s Michael Brakebill laid out the argument in a recent piece:
"“With Gabriel Moreno in the mix, the Jays are looking to move one of their three solid catchers in Kirk, Moreno, and Danny Jansen. Kirk’s price will be highly hefty if he is the one that is moved. Depending on whom you ask, he has slightly more trade value than Sean Murphy due to having four years of team control instead of Murphy’s three, but if the Cubs want to jump right back into the thick of things, he is the perfect answer to their catcher troubles.”"
Kirk registered nine catcher framing runs saved on the season, good for fourth-best in the majors. He also had a productive slash line from both sides of the plate. I, for one, don’t understand why the Jays are intent on trading Kirk, but he’d be a great fit in Chicago if they can scrounge up a trade package.