Inside The Cubs

Chicago Cubs Could Move Fan-Favorite Pitcher at Trade Deadline

The Chicago Cubs could move one of their fans' favorite players at the MLB trade deadline.

Kade Kistner

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Will the Chicago Cubs be buyers or sellers at this season's MLB trade deadline?

That is the question as they prepare to start the second half of the year coming out of the MLB All-Star break. 

Despite being 42-47, they are the only team in the National League Central with a positive run differential. But they still are quite far out of the National League Central race.

That means many have them pegged as sellers. Names like Marcus Stroman, Cody Bellinger and Kyle Hendricks have all been floated as possible trade chips.

But fan-favorite Mark Leiter Jr.?

According to Yahoo Sports the Cubs could look into moving the right-hander by the Aug. 1 deadline. 

"Okay, so trading Leiter likely wouldn’t be a popular move based on his performance this season as one of the bullpen’s most-consistently reliable arms, but a team could very well give the Cubs a solid return if they would choose to move him," writes James Neveau.

"After all, Leiter has a 3.19 ERA and has racked up 52 strikeouts in 36.2 innings of work, with his splitter serving as one of baseball’s most devastating pitches."

To be honest, it's not a bad plan.

Leiter is on a one-year, $850,000 contract and will be a free agent at the end of the season. He is a reliable bullpen arm that has pitched in big situations this season already.

Every contender is looking for bullpen help and Leiter is the precise type of player a contender will look to acquire to bolster their roster for a postseason run.

It would be a hard pill to swallow for Cubs fans as Leiter has endeared himself to the fanbase and been a bright spot in the first half of the season. 

But he could also command a return that would help the franchise continue to build towards their ultimate goal of compiling a World Series contending roster. 

It's not a fun idea, but it's also not a bad one. 

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Kade Kistner
KADE KISTNER

Kade Kistner is the publisher and beat writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Cubs. An alumnus of Tulane University, Kade graduated in 2017 with a degree in Latin American Studies and a minor in Spanish. Upon graduation, Kade commissioned into the United States Navy and attended Naval Flight School in Pensacola, Fl. He served as a Naval Aviator and was stationed in Jacksonville, Fl. During his time in school and the Navy, Kade began covering the MLB and NFL with USA Today, SB Nation, and Sports Illustrated. Kade covered the New Orleans Saints, Texas Rangers, and numerous other teams within the Sports Illustrated network before launching Inside the Phillies, Inside the Astros, and Inside the Cubs. You can follow him on Twitter at @KadeKistner, or if you have any questions or comments he can be reached via email at kwkistner@gmail.com.

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