At least one Cubs outfielder won’t be traded regardless of fire sale

The Chicago Cubs had arguably been playing their best baseball of the season entering Saturday's double-header, winning five in a row including a three-game sweep against the now 57-38 Orioles.

Cubs fans had hope that perhaps this team had a run in it to get itself back into the postseason race. After getting swept in Saturday's doubleheader by the St. Louis Cardinals, especially with the second game ending in the fashion that it did, it's safe to say that the Cubs lost a good amount of momentum that they had gained.

Chicago is now 46-51 on the year. They're only 4.5 games back of the third Wild Card spot in the NL, but also have the fourth-worst record in the NL. FanGraphs gave them an 11.4 percent chance to make the postseason before Saturday's games, and those odds will only get slimmer after this sweep.

Sure, the Cubs can bounce right back and go on a big run, but barring that, they're looking like clear trade deadline sellers. One area that the Cubs could look to trade pieces from is their outfield. Regardless of how much the Cubs decide to trade at the deadline, one outfielder in particular won't be going anywhere.

Ian Happ won't be traded regardless of how much Cubs sell at trade deadline

Cody Bellinger is the headliner of that group, as not only is he the best player, but he can hit free agency at the end of the year if he chooses to opt out of his deal. Seiya Suzuki is another outfielder who could potentially be on the move if the Cubs get the right return. Even Mike Tauchman can get dealt amidst his breakout year despite his injury.

Trading at least one outfielder might be in Chicago's best interest, as that'd open regular at-bats for Pete Crow-Armstrong, and can open up playing time for some of Chicago's best prospects like Owen Caissie and Kevin Alcantara who are close to being MLB-ready.

While we don't know if the Cubs will or will even want to trade any of their outfielders, what we do know is that one player in particular, Ian Happ, will not be going anywhere at the deadline.

As reported by Ken Rosenthal, Patrick Mooney, and Katie Woo of The Athletic (subscription required), Happ has a no-trade clause in the extension that he signed to remain in Chicago a couple of weeks after Opening Day of last season.

"As the Chicago Cubs near another buy-or-sell decision, Ian Happ knows he’s not going anywhere because he pushed for a no-trade clause in the three-year, $61 million contract extension he signed last year."

It would've been fair to assume that Happ might've approved of a trade to a team that he believes can win a World Series, but the fact that it was noted that Happ pushed for a no-trade clause makes it extremely unlikely that he'll want to go anywhere.

“This organization has meant so much to me,” Happ said. “The opportunity I’ve been given, the honor to represent the city and the uniform, and the history of that, those things mean a lot to me. Not to mention the family aspect of my wife’s from Chicago. It’s an important place to us. You don’t get a lot of security in this game. And it takes a long time to get it.”

Happ pushing for a no-trade clause makes sense as the Cubs are the only organization he has ever known. They drafted him in the first round of the 2015 MLB Draft and he has played all eight of his MLB seasons in the Windy City. He's comfortable in Chicago and doesn't want to move his family.

Happ having a no-trade clause is unfortunate news for teams in need of an outfielder. Not only would the 29-year-old come with two full seasons of club control, but he's a really solid player, posting a .802 OPS and hitting 14 home runs this season in 89 games played.

He's far from a household name outside of Chicago, but Happ is a very well-rounded left fielder. He's a switch hitter, has won two consecutive Gold Gloves, has hit as many as 25 home runs in a season, and gets on base a ton, boasting a .344 OBP in his career.

If the Cubs want to trade an outfielder, Bellinger and/or Suzuki feel like safer bets to get dealt than Happ who is in complete control of where he plays in his next two seasons.