Ricketts Says Cubs are Buyers Right Now

     This take is interesting to me. One, because I am and have been a fan of this team for more than half a century. So, I've seen bad Cubbie teams and good Cubbie teams. Two. I've been all in on the 2023 team since they broke camp. Not only because they improved the roster with a sprinkling of veterans but because of the glut of young talent that's coming up. At the break wherever the team is at in the standings, I see a team that will continue to improve throughout the season. Given the fact that no team has stepped forward in the division and said "I'm the king." I don't think it is too much of a stretch to say that it could be us. So yes, I am all for adding that one guy that will put us over the hump. Be that a consistent power hitter or a good arm or two out of the pen. I was intrigued with the talk of the Cardinals possibly be willing to part with Goldschmidt. I wonder if that was a possibility what they would be looking for in return? Don't get me wrong, I would love to have him, he would look great in blue, but I don't want to trade away our future. We have done too much of that in the past. 

6 minutes ago, Billy62 said:

     This take is interesting to me. One, because I am and have been a fan of this team for more than half a century. So, I've seen bad Cubbie teams and good Cubbie teams. Two. I've been all in on the 2023 team since they broke camp. Not only because they improved the roster with a sprinkling of veterans but because of the glut of young talent that's coming up. At the break wherever the team is at in the standings, I see a team that will continue to improve throughout the season. Given the fact that no team has stepped forward in the division and said "I'm the king." I don't think it is too much of a stretch to say that it could be us. So yes, I am all for adding that one guy that will put us over the hump. Be that a consistent power hitter or a good arm or two out of the pen. I was intrigued with the talk of the Cardinals possibly be willing to part with Goldschmidt. I wonder if that was a possibility what they would be looking for in return? Don't get me wrong, I would love to have him, he would look great in blue, but I don't want to trade away our future. We have done too much of that in the past. 

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Goldschmidt is perhaps the most intriguing name on the board. He has some control but it's not so onerous that it's particularly concerning if things go awry.

But how comfortable are teams trading in the division like this? Personally, I don't think it's a big deal but clubs often feel differently.

There's just no way the Cards would trade Goldschmidt to us unless they knew he was totally and completely broken. They can't take the hit with their fans this year, even if we overpaid.

48 minutes ago, Rex Buckingham said:

There's just no way the Cards would trade Goldschmidt to us unless they knew he was totally and completely broken. They can't take the hit with their fans this year, even if we overpaid.

Yeah, the Goldschmidt conversation could be a fascinating one about how much to prioritize a 1.5 year window, but the Cardinals would hold a very high bar in trading him for anyone since they likely don't want to(unlike the Soto situation), and they aren't going to send him to the Cubs.

If you are stl, why wouldn’t you trade him to the Cubs? He does nothing for the long term competitiveness of the Cubs roster. They stink this year and probably want to shake things up. If the cubs go on a run and win a World Series this year or next, what is this hit you think they take from their fans? Are they not going to show up Next year? If anything, I think the cubs would be more hesitant to trade away prospects that will haunt them for the next 6-8 years, than Stl would be to give the Cubs a couple WAR boost that costs a lot of money. 

11 minutes ago, jersey cubs fan said:

If you are stl, why wouldn’t you trade him to the Cubs? He does nothing for the long term competitiveness of the Cubs roster. They stink this year and probably want to shake things up. If the cubs go on a run and win a World Series this year or next, what is this hit you think they take from their fans? Are they not going to show up Next year? If anything, I think the cubs would be more hesitant to trade away prospects that will haunt them for the next 6-8 years, than Stl would be to give the Cubs a couple WAR boost that costs a lot of money. 

When is the last trade the Cubs and Cardinals made?  I might be blanking on something but I think it might be ages ago, and it definitely predates my fandom for something on the scale of a Goldschmidt trade. Even spanning front offices and eras I think there's something to the fact that whether it's rational or not, it doesn't happen.

But even if we ignore the precedent, the Cardinals are very attendance dependent compared to their nearest competition, and they're starting to feel the hurt in that department.  Trading Goldschmidt to their divisional rival is as clear of a signal they can give that they're punting in the short term, unless the return was beyond the pale for the Cubs to consider.  Casual fans would see it as giving up, die hards are already pissed at ownership and it would feed their cynicism about not spending more.  Which bring us back to them needing a beyond the pale package to make it worth their while.

20 minutes ago, Transmogrified Tiger said:

When is the last trade the Cubs and Cardinals made?  I might be blanking on something but I think it might be ages ago, and it definitely predates my fandom for something on the scale of a Goldschmidt trade. Even spanning front offices and eras I think there's something to the fact that whether it's rational or not, it doesn't happen.

But even if we ignore the precedent, the Cardinals are very attendance dependent compared to their nearest competition, and they're starting to feel the hurt in that department.  Trading Goldschmidt to their divisional rival is as clear of a signal they can give that they're punting in the short term, unless the return was beyond the pale for the Cubs to consider.  Casual fans would see it as giving up, die hards are already pissed at ownership and it would feed their cynicism about not spending more.  Which bring us back to them needing a beyond the pale package to make it worth their while.

Last Cubs/Cardinals trade was in 2007 and was extremely minor (John Nelson to Cubs for PTBNL). Last trade of any consequence at all was 2002 with the Cubs sending Jeff Fassero to STL. Last trade of consequence anywhere near Goldschmidt would be the Cubs trading Bruce Sutter in 1980. 
 

They have to sellers now, right?