The Chicago Cubs have an influx of talented prospects and room for another star on the pitching staff.
Could they use one of those facts to address the other?
Former MLB executive Jim Bowden of The Athletic (subscription required) recently came up with a handful of prospect packages that could at least start a conversation surrounding Pittsburgh Pirates generational ace Paul Skenes.
The Cubs prospect package floated was pitcher Cade Horton, third baseman Matt Shaw, outfielder Kevin Alcantara and shortstop Juan Tomas.
That is a franchise-altering deal for the Pirates and would absolutely be worth considering, given that they likely won’t be paying Skenes major money once arbitration rolls around in 2027.
It’s the Juan Soto dilemma all over again.
Pittsburgh has to know that Skenes isn’t a lifer given how things have gone at the start of his time there, so they might as well maximize his value.
Him being 22 right now with team control through 2029 is about as much value as a team could ask for in return, especially since he also hasn’t run into any major health issues yet, which feels like a rarity these days.
Through his first 35 career starts, he has a 2.03 ERA with a 206 ERA+, 0.936 WHIP and 10.7 K/9. There is no question about his presence as both an All-Star and Cy Young candidate for the next decade.
That is the type of talent that warrants a package of three top 100 overall prospects and another that is still top-15 organizationally. There is also the issue of Chicago needed to add extra value to convince the Pirates to move him within the NL Central.
Horton would be a replacement young pitcher with years of team control who would be much cheaper than Skenes while still having a high ceiling.
He dominated Triple-A to start the year with a 1.24 ERA over six starts and has a had a rockier, but promising beginning to his MLB career.
Shaw has looked every part of a cornerstone third base prospect since being called up for his second stint in the Majors. He’s posted a .382/.432/.529 slash line with three RBI and five stolen bases over the last nine games.
Alcantara is a bit more raw of a prospect at 22, but he has the athletic profile of a star outfielder.
At worst, he seems like a future perennial 20/20 player.
Tomas is icing on the cake as a 17-year-old switch-hitting international shortstop prospect with five-tool potential.
Would this be enough to land the generational pitching talent?
The Cubs should try to find out.
