{"id":17017,"date":"2024-12-11T10:58:12","date_gmt":"2024-12-11T10:58:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017"},"modified":"2024-12-11T10:58:12","modified_gmt":"2024-12-11T10:58:12","slug":"latest-on-seiya-suzukis-trade-candidacy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017","title":{"rendered":"Latest On Seiya Suzuki&#8217;s Trade Candidacy"},"content":{"rendered":"<article>\n<header>By Nick Deeds | <time datetime=\"2024-12-10T22:12:20-06:00\">December 10, 2024<\/time> at <time datetime=\"2024-12-10T22:12:20-06:00\">10:12pm CDT<\/time><\/p>\n<\/header>\n<div>\n<p>While the overwhelming majority of the focus on the Cubs\u2019 outfield mix this winter has been on the trade candidacy of <strong>Cody Bellinger<\/strong>, teammate <strong>Seiya Suzuki<\/strong> has emerged as an intriguing trade candidate in his own right in recent weeks. Previous reporting has described the club as \u201cdetermined\u201d to move one of the two outfielders, and today Suzuki\u2019s agent Joel Wolfe offered notable insight on the possibility of his client getting dealt, as relayed by ESPN\u2019s Jesse Rogers.<\/p>\n<p>Wolfe told reporters (including Rogers) this afternoon that Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer approached him last night about which teams are interested in Suzuki\u2019s services. Notably, Suzuki has a full no-trade clause, meaning that he and Wolfe are free to reject any trade proposal involving the outfielder. Wolfe suggested that while Suzuki is theoretically open to a trade, he added that \u201cit\u2019s a pretty small universe\u201d in terms of teams he would be willing to entertain being moved to.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to confirming that there are teams at least inquiring on Suzuki\u2019s availability, Wolfe\u2019s comments also revealed one potential motivation for Suzuki to entertain trade offers: his desire to play the outfield on a regular basis. Following the emergence of top prospect <strong>Pete Crow-Armstrong<\/strong> as the club\u2019s everyday center fielder last summer, Suzuki found himself parked at DH on a regular basis once the club\u2019s outfield mix was fully health and Bellinger cemented himself as the club\u2019s regular right fielder. That\u2019s a situation he was evidently displeased with, as Wolfe suggested that Suzuki likely \u201cwould not have signed with a team\u201d who pitched being their everyday DH to him in free agency.<\/p>\n<p>That potential source of discord between player and team shines a new light on the Cubs\u2019 efforts to trade either Suzuki or Bellinger this winter. With <strong>Ian Happ<\/strong> locked in as the club\u2019s left fielder and Crow-Armstrong having cemented himself in center, it\u2019s undeniable that the club\u2019s best defensive alignment with their current group of players involves Bellinger in right field with Suzuki at DH. Suzuki was well-regarded defensively for his work in the outfield during his NPB days but has oscillated between average and below average throughout his three seasons in the big leagues according to defensive metrics. His -3 Outs Above Average last year ranked 33rd among 42 qualified right fielders. While Bellinger did not get enough reps to qualify, he\u2019s earned +2 Outs Above Average for his work across all three outfield spots in two seasons with the Cubs and is generally regarded as a plus defender in an outfield corner.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, that\u2019s not to say the Cubs would necessarily prefer to trade Suzuki. Indeed, the club\u2019s apparent aggressiveness in shopping Bellinger suggests just the opposite, and it\u2019s not hard to see why. For one things, Bellinger\u2019s $27.5MM salary in 2025 eclipses the $19MM Suzuki is owed this year, and Bellinger\u2019s player option for 2026 offers Chicago less certainty moving forward than Suzuki\u2019s guaranteed contract. What\u2019s more, Suzuki is a better hitter and perhaps even the best hitter on the team. The 29-year-old\u2019s .283\/.366\/.482 (138 wRC+) slash line this year dwarfs Bellinger\u2019s own line of .266\/.325\/.426 (109 wRC+), and Suzuki has long been a statcast darling who hits the ball hard and takes his walks compared to Bellinger\u2019s low exit velocities and contact-oriented approach.<\/p>\n<p>To that end, Cubs GM Carter Hawkins spoke to reporters (including Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune) this afternoon and downplayed the likelihood of a trade.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>We don\u2019t want to trade Seiya,<\/em>\u201d Hawkins said, as relayed by Montemurro. \u201c<em>but, look, as [Wolfe] talked about there\u2019s people interested in great players and so if teams come asking those are at least conversations that we\u2019re willing to have, but I really don\u2019t think much is going to come of it.<\/em>\u201c<\/p>\n<p>Hawkins\u2019s comments lend further credence to previous reporting regarding Suzuki\u2019s availability that suggested while the Cubs were willing to entertain offers for the slugger, a deal was only likely to come together if Chicago was unable to trade Bellinger. To this point, Bellinger has received reported interest from the Yankees, Mariners, Astros, and Diamondbacks at the very least, suggesting that a Bellinger trade remains the more likely outcome unless the market for his services falls apart in the coming days and weeks.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p>View Comments (47)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While the overwhelming majority of the focus on the Cubs&#8217; outfield mix this winter has been on the trade candidacy &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":17018,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[104,592],"class_list":["post-17017","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb","tag-cody-bellinger","tag-seiya-suzuki"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Latest On Seiya Suzuki&#039;s Trade Candidacy - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Latest On Seiya Suzuki&#039;s Trade Candidacy - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"While the overwhelming majority of the focus on the Cubs&#039; outfield mix this winter has been on the trade candidacy &hellip;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-12-11T10:58:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/a1-2-4.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"MrThanh\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"MrThanh\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017\",\"name\":\"Latest On Seiya Suzuki's Trade Candidacy - NEWS USA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/a1-2-4.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-12-11T10:58:12+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-12-11T10:58:12+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/850fd1b8bcb1d322b7f0a04b3d2f18ec\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/a1-2-4.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/a1-2-4.jpg\",\"width\":900,\"height\":900},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Latest On Seiya Suzuki&#8217;s Trade Candidacy\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"NEWS USA\",\"description\":\"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/850fd1b8bcb1d322b7f0a04b3d2f18ec\",\"name\":\"MrThanh\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8c8f2d90ff2a21a61a5e6bc0619622a5021fc65353885d9d7b3db1c8c7c1ca8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8c8f2d90ff2a21a61a5e6bc0619622a5021fc65353885d9d7b3db1c8c7c1ca8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"MrThanh\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=6\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Latest On Seiya Suzuki's Trade Candidacy - NEWS USA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Latest On Seiya Suzuki's Trade Candidacy - NEWS USA","og_description":"While the overwhelming majority of the focus on the Cubs' outfield mix this winter has been on the trade candidacy &hellip;","og_url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017","og_site_name":"NEWS USA","article_published_time":"2024-12-11T10:58:12+00:00","og_image":[{"width":900,"height":900,"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/a1-2-4.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"MrThanh","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"MrThanh","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017","name":"Latest On Seiya Suzuki's Trade Candidacy - NEWS USA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/a1-2-4.jpg","datePublished":"2024-12-11T10:58:12+00:00","dateModified":"2024-12-11T10:58:12+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/850fd1b8bcb1d322b7f0a04b3d2f18ec"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/a1-2-4.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/a1-2-4.jpg","width":900,"height":900},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=17017#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Latest On Seiya Suzuki&#8217;s Trade Candidacy"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/","name":"NEWS USA","description":"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/850fd1b8bcb1d322b7f0a04b3d2f18ec","name":"MrThanh","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8c8f2d90ff2a21a61a5e6bc0619622a5021fc65353885d9d7b3db1c8c7c1ca8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8c8f2d90ff2a21a61a5e6bc0619622a5021fc65353885d9d7b3db1c8c7c1ca8d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"MrThanh"},"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=6"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17017","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=17017"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17017\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17019,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17017\/revisions\/17019"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/17018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=17017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=17017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=17017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}