The Chicago Cubs have the number 2 pick in the draft, and I think it’s fair to say they want Mark Appel to fall to them at 2. If the Houston Astros take Appel at 1, I believe Kris Bryant is the pick at 2 even though the Cubs need pitching. If the Cubs do in deed go with Bryant and he’s as good as I think he will be, could Starlin Castro be trade bait to get a stud starter? Someone like David Price perhaps? Last year, I would have said no way in hell. This year, well…I tend to believe that yeah- he could be bait to get starting pitching if the Cubs select Kris Bryant.
Javier Baez is still loved by the front office as a shortstop, and they have shown no plans in moving him or Castro to a different position. That’s a little odd to me because you can’t play two shortstops. If Kris Bryant comes in and mashes at third, well, he’s clearly the third basemen of the present and the future right? So now what do you do with Baez/Castro? Move one to second? Yeah, I’d be in favor of that because Darwin Barney can’t hit to save his life, but would it make more sense to trade Castro if the right deal came around?
Starlin Castro is one of the best young hitters in baseball, but he has yet to show the growth and discipline needed to be a star. Maybe he never will hit that ceiling. Maybe it makes sense to trade Castro on the high for that stud starter the Cubs desperately need. Maybe it doesn’t. All I can say is I would absolutely take a long hard look at it if I were Jed Hoyer and Theo Epstein because I think you could demand the world for Castro and get it. If the right deal presented itself, I believe the Cubs would pull the trigger- IF Kris Bryant is the pick and develops the way I think he will.
We’ll see what happens, but at this point, the Cubs will do whatever they can to become a contender, and that means no one is untouchable. This draft will tell us ALOT of the direction of the Cubs. Let the cards fall where they may.
