Although the MLB trade deadline is nearly three months away, the Chicago Cubs are still rumored to be looking for a starting pitcher and bullpen help, and those rumors will only continue until the deadline passes. Team President Jed Hoyer has assembled a team that has performed well, owning a 19-13 record. However, like with most winning teams, this team must fill a couple of holes. For Chicago, that means moving on from some of its top-tier prospect group, and outfielder Owen Caissie is one player to zero in on.
Moving Caissie is significantly less risky if the Cubs are serious about keeping Kyle Tucker long-term. Whether through an extension or a blank check in MLB free agency, keeping Tucker means the Cubs have him and budding superstar Pete Crow-Armstrong in the mix for the foreseeable future. Three-time Gold Glove winner Ian Happ is signed at least through next season, leaving the Cubs with two top-100 outfield prospects in Kevin Alcantara and Caissie with nowhere to play every day.
Caissie is scuffling a bit to begin the year, with a slash of .233/.341/.521, but the four home runs and 10 RBIs in 19 games are a plus. Caissie is currently in his second year of Triple-A ball because he has nowhere else to play, and with the Cubs outfield potentially getting more crowded, it wouldn't be a surprise if he is the one moved.
For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the Discord to get the inside scoop during the MLB season.
The Cubs could be this trade deadline's most aggressive team
Jed Hoyer is potentially on a contract year with the Cubs in that, if the team doesn't make the playoffs, he is as good as gone. The Cubs have missed out on the postseason in each of the last four seasons with Hoyer at the helm, and though they've established a top-tier farm system, Hoyer may feel the pressure to deliver at this year's deadline.
The trick will be to juggle being aggressive enough to catapult the Cubs into October baseball, while not altogether scrapping what they've built, leaving flexibility for additions in the future. Having seven top-100 prospects (according to MLB Pipeline) is a luxury every big market dreams of.
When you have a stockpile at one position, such as with Caissie and Alcantara in the outfield, you have movable assets that could net you several wins now. The Cubs will be shopping for an upper-echelon starting pitcher and help for the backend of the bullpen, but to do so, they will need to move on from players like Caissie.