With news that the Chicago Cubs will be without their ace Justin Steele for the remainder of the season, it's easy to think the Cubs' campaign has been completely derailed. Although it is a significant blow, it's important to remember that the Cubs are currently 10-7 and, outside of one series against Oakland, have faced all playoff-caliber teams to begin the campaign. Not to take away from Steele's importance to the team's pitching staff, but he isn't the reason they're three games above .500.
Steele's best start was his last start, when he pitched seven shutout innings against the Texas Rangers. Besides that, his ERA was underwhelming at 4.76 through four starts. He looked to have been turning a corner, but the point I'm making is that the Cubs have been hot all on their own and still have the framework of a winning team.
With an in-season addition, they are just as ready to take the NL Central as they were yesterday. Here are three pitchers to target via trade this season, whether now, if they can twist a team's arm hard enough, or at the trade deadline.
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1. Dustin May
Although the Dodgers are far from being sellers, their starting pitching depth is incredible. Their rotation consists of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, Roki Sasaki, May, and Landon Knack. Blake Snell, Shohei Ohtani, and Tony Gonsolin are all due back before long and have plenty of depth as far as their rotation goes. Though he's been often injured recently, May is set to hit free agency this winter and is expendable for a team with endless resources.
May currently owns a 0.82 ERA through two starts, and given the injury history and pending free agency, it's unlikely the Dodgers would land anything close to a top-tier prospect for his services. It's also unlikely May will stay in the starting rotation once Snell, Ohtani, and Gonsolin are back. Their bullpen is also loaded, so we'll need to keep an eye on May when it comes time for roster moves in L.A. The Cubs can help the Dodgers with that problem while addressing an issue of their own.
2. Sandy Alcantara
I firmly believe that Sandy Alcántara will be moved this season. The Miami Marlins, however, don't have to hurry. As important as it is for the Cubs to find a replacement for Steele, they can't just land whoever they want because they have a sound farm system. When more teams inquire for Alcántara, the Marlins will undoubtedly get more bang for their buck at the deadline than they would if they move him now to the Cubs.
All offseason long, the Cubs' main goal was to add a starting pitcher to the front of their rotation. They failed to do so and now lost their ace. When Alcántara is made available, Jed Hoyer must be ready to make the splash whenever the Cubs can snag him. He has nothing to lose, given that he is on the hot season this year. Hoarding prospects won't benefit him, and he can only hope the Cubs can coast to the deadline to make significant additions.