Once the Trade Deadline Comes and Goes, What Will Make the Cubs Interesting?

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I spend a lot of time thinking about, well, time. I’ve learned that it’s my most coveted resource and my most stringent boundary. So when I’m thinking about the things that I consume, especially in sport, I value my time.

Image courtesy of © Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

Admittedly, I’ve wavered on a number of occasions, as it relates to the 2024 Chicago Cubs. The team appeared to collapse in on itself after a strong April. An underperforming offense and a woeful bullpen had me starting to think about the other ways in which I could consume the sport, without it being related to my disappointing team of choice.

To date, writing has forced me to remain engaged. But as we prepare to hit the Jul. 30 trade deadline (a point in time at which the Cubs figure to sell some stuff and get worse for the balance of the campaign, not better), I start to wonder about the benefit of such engagement once the team has essentially thrown in the towel on the season. 

Not that the Cubs are in a position to sell off their roster. They have aspirations of contention next year. They have too many multi-year contracts, juxtaposed with too much underperformance, to look the way that the Oakland Athletics or Chicago White Sox might once the calendar flips over to August. At worst (and probably at best), they’re looking at a sustained purgatory for the remainder of 2024.

So why should we tune in? There’s an outside shot at contention even after the deadline, sure. But considering the way this team has looked all year, it’s hard to imagine being eager to engage even after the threshold has passed. They don’t excel in any facet of the game that makes you want to watch. They lack an identity. What will we still be doing here, post-July?

For me, it really seems to boil down to two elements. The first is the arms. Porter Hodge has been excellent. Hunter Bigge will return from his optional assignment once a reliever gets traded or hurt. Daniel Palencia, too. Ben Brown just started mound work. Factor in Justin Steele and Shota Imanaga atop the rotation, and there remains a really interesting collection of pitchers to watch, who should be a lock to be around after July. Between the stuff and the velocity, it remains an exciting group, for now and for next year. Watch them get the work in on the mound and then shift your attention elsewhere while they’re at the plate. 

The other is the potential for call-ups on the positional side. Moises Ballesteros. Matt Shaw. Owen Caissie. The Cubs have been an infuriating group to watch operate at the plate this year, Michael Busch and post-April Ian Happ notwithstanding. The Cubs effectively calling it a year should mean that we get at least an early glimpse of some of their top positional prospects. That’s reason enough to tune in, assuming the team is willing to open up spots to make it happen.

Ultimately, the reasons to tune in after July are fairly standard among non-contenders. You have your few young, exciting players, and some prospects about to crack the top level. You tune in to watch those guys, but maybe don’t invest in the outcome the way that you otherwise would have. It’s not a unique method of fan operation. In fact, it's a very familiar one for us Cubs fans.

And that’s the important thing. The Cubs have not been fun to watch this year. Even their wins have been agonizing. For someone who clings to the value of time as much as I do, it’s been a labor. I want upper-tier defense. I want velocity. I want action at the plate. We all do. We’ve gotten only some of that this year, and only some of the time.

If anything, I’ve come around to thinking that the 2024 Chicago Cubs could actually be more exciting once they’ve given up. A no-pressure environment in which some of their rising arms and future positional players can showcase what we might have to look forward to. I’ve spent the majority of the year wondering what this team’s future trajectory looks like, given their current stagnation. August and September look to offer just a little bit more energy in that respect.

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