porterbela

I would think you’d have to start a package with Happ and Almora. From there I would think a Montgomery and/or prospects. I’m not saying it’ll get a deal done, but it’s a start.

Teams probably prefer not to trade ML pieces at deadline if contending. But if Theo was willing to trade Nomar at the deadline, even if it was 14 years ago, you can never rule it out with him.

I think most would say "yes" to that question. Not enough depth right now. I don't think the Cubs really need to get an ace type pitcher if they think Darvish will come back healthy soon. However, you have to assume the Brewers will be making a big splash to energize their team. It's also looking ahead to the playoffs. Cubs need a healthy and strong bullpen. If they don't add another starter that's better than Chatwood, they're going to struggle to keep that bullpen fresh.

I 100% agree. I wish it were enough but from talking to my buddy that's a Mets fan, I doubt it's nearly enough. I'm not taking anything away from Almora or Happ here but I don't think they're the type of player the Mets want back, I could be wrong. However, if the Mets are willing to trade legit No. 1 starting pitchers with 2+ years of control left, why would they trade them for players that are already in the big leagues? If that's what they're looking for then I'd guess they'd want Schwarbs, Russell, or Baez instead. Also, if one of those pitchers are available, you bet your ass that Stearns and the Brewers aren't going to let the Cubs outbid them again. I told my buddy that the 2015 Mets reminded me of the 2003 Cubs with all the young pitching and if they didn't win that year they'd have to blow it up and start building more like the 2015 Cubs...he laughed at me. :D :D

If the Cubs don't make a move heading into the regular season, their moves are Chatwood and Morrow and lost Arrieta? The Brewers were nearly better than them last year. The Cubs played the first half of 2017 with Jake Arrieta having a 4.35 ERA, Kyle Hendricks throwing 84 mph, and Jose Quintana not being on the team. Eddie Butler had the best ERA (3.88) of anybody with at least 11 starts. They still won the division by 6 games. I think that's the biggest factor that all the media and baseball fans (Brewers in particular) forget about. The Cubs were not a good team the first half of the season. The second half? They only managed to put up the best record in the NL. The Brewers just got better and you could argue the Cubs haven't improved much this off season (SP signing pending). However, I've seen a lot of Brewer fans use the first half of 2017 as a predictor as to how good the Brewers will be next season and also as a predictor as to how the Cubs will fare in 2017. Unfortunately, that's not how it works. You can't have it both ways. I would be surprised, even with their moves (which I like), I doubt the Brewers repeat their 1st half of 2017. That being said, I also believe that the Brewers won't repeat the 2nd half of 2017 either. All season long the Brewers were excited because they were winning with players that weren't even their prospects.