Kris Bryant is in the final year of his contract with the Chicago Cubs and with no extension talks happening between the two sides, it looks like Bryant will be traded at some point this season. Bryant has been playing all over the field this season including left field and third base for Chicago while is hitting .312 with two Wins Above Replacement already this season entering Tuesday. To put it simply, he is going to garner plenty of interest. However, talking about Bryant’s trade status right now is absolutely ridiculous as it is way too early for the Cubs to be making a decision right now.
Trade Deadline is Two Months Away
Even though the trade deadline is July 30 this year instead of July 31, it’s still over two months away. We haven’t even got into the month of June yet, so a lot of things can change between now and the end of July. The Cubs are right behind the Cardinals in the National League Central. If they continue to play well over the course of the next couple of months, President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer will have a very tough decision to make. Or, the Cubs’ pitching staff won’t keep the team afloat and Hoyer will have a much easier decision to make regarding if the organization should say goodbye to their former NL MVP.
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Let’s go back to 2019. The Washington Nationals started off their season 19-31 but then went 15-10 and 19-7 respectively in July and August. If general manager Mike Rizzo would’ve reacted when they were 12 games under .500 and traded away some of their veterans such as Howie Kendrick or Anthony Rendon, then they certainly wouldn’t have made it into the Wild Card game and eventually won the 2019 World Series in Houston. While it is unlikely that the Cubs are going to win the World Series this year, things can change a lot over the next 60 days, for better or worse, which will factor into the decision.
Possible Suitors Haven’t Evaluated their Teams
The fact that we are still in May is also valid to note in regards to other teams who might be interested in acquiring Bryant. There are some teams right now like the San Francisco Giants and Boston Red Sox that are at the top or near the top of their divisions right now despite not being expected to contend this season. With that said, both teams and other clubs in similar situations could fall off a cliff in the next couple of days. If that happens, they wouldn’t be suitors any longer for Bryant’s services. Or, they could continue to win, and come July, a team like San Francisco or Boston might be inclined to give Hoyer and the Cubs a phone call.
Another thing to note about other possible suitors is they might have some struggling players on their rosters right now that could turn things around. San Diego Padres fans want A.J. Preller to make a trade for another left fielder like Bryant because their current one, Tommy Pham, has struggled mightily to begin the season. Despite homering on Monday against Milwaukee, Pham is still hitting just .195 with two home runs in 123 at-bats. However, if Pham can turn things around, then the Padres probably are not going to be in the market for Bryant. But if he doesn’t, then Padres fans will be all talking about bringing Bryant back to San Diego where he went to college at USD.
It’s Simply Too Early
It is easy to get reactionary and emotional when your favorite team is in need of an All-Star player such as Bryant but we are still a long time away from when the Cubs have to make a decision about their future with Bryant.
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