Chicago Cubs Land Isaac Paredes in Trade With Tampa Bay Rays, per Report

The Cubs are sending out Christopher Morel and prospects in the deal.

Jul 25, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Isaac Paredes (17) celebrates in the dugout with teammates after scoring a run against the Toronto Blue Jays in the seventh inning at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports / Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

In a shocking twist of events, the Chicago Cubs are the winners of the Isaac Paredes sweepstakes. On Sunday ESPN's Jeff Passan was first to report the third baseman was headed to the Windy City, and the Tampa Bay Rays will receive Christopher Morel and prospects for their prized trade chip.

Prized Paredes was, too. He was considered one of the top players available ahead of the July 30 deadline after making the All-Star Game earlier this month. The infielder is slashing .247/.355/.438 with 16 home runs and 55 RBI on the season. Paredes is a solid bat who will make for a very helpful addition to Chicago's lineup.

It's unclear whether the Cubs plan for that help to turn around this season or if they are building for the future. Because if it's the former, then they have a lot of work to do. Chicago currently sits last in the NL Central with a 50-56 record and a full 10 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers for the division lead. What's more, the Cubs are also 6.0 games out of the second NL wild card spot. Seeing any playoff baseball at all will require a very strong push in the second half and some luck in the form of opponents stumbling down the stretch.

If the Cubs know that's a long shot and instead believe Paredes is a future cornerstone, then trading Morel for his services is an... interesting decision. Morel has struggled mightily both at the plate and in the field for the organization this season but is only 25 years old and one season removed from hitting nine homers in 12 games to kick off his Cubs career.

In some ways it seems like a swap of a 25-year-old slugger with potential in Morel for a 25-year-old slugger with realized All-Star potential in Paredes, which makes it a net victory for the Cubs. But it does not clarify what Chicago's expectations are for this year or the future.

Still, talented players are hard to come by and the Cubs added another with this trade.