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MLB Trade Deadline: Cubs reportedly land Justin Wilson and Alex Avila from Tigers
July 31, 2017 by admin
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The
Chicago Cubs
have reached an agreement to a deal to acquire left-handed reliever
Justin Wilson
from the
Detroit Tigers
in exchange for third baseman
Jeimer Candelario
, reports Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. Ken Rosenthal of MLB Network reports that the deal is at the medical review stage as well, but throws in that the Cubs will also get catcher
Alex Avila
. He notes that Candelario and “at least one other” player will go to the Tigers.
The latest is now that it would be Wilson and Avila for Candelario, Class A prospect Isaac Paredes and a player to be named or cash, reports Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press. Fenech adds the following:
The Tigers-Cubs trade is “at the one-yard line,” I’m told. Medical records are being reviewed before it’s finalized.
— anthony fenech (@anthonyfenech) July 31, 2017
Wilson, 29, is in the midst of a great season for the Tigers. He took over as closer and has saved 13 games in 15 tries with a 2.68 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 55 strikeouts against 16 walks in 40 1/3 innings.
Where Wilson fits in the Cubs’ bullpen is a fun topic.
Wade Davis
surely remains the closer no matter what, but Maddon has a bevy of guys he employs in late-inning, high-leverage situations, including
Carl Edwards
Jr.,
Pedro Strop
,
Koji Uehara
,
Hector Rondon
and lefty
Brian Duensing
.
Mike Montgomery
is a lefty like Duensing and Wilson, but he remains the long inning guy.
Justin Grimm
may be in trouble of being designated for assignment here, as he’s the likely guy squeezed out the presence of Wilson.
The look of the Cubs’ bullpen was already strong. The stable currently boasts a 3.34 bullpen ERA, which is good for fourth (tied with the
New York Yankees
, actually) in the majors, trailing only the
Cleveland Indians
,
Los Angeles Dodgers
and
Boston Red Sox
.
In looking ahead at the upside, a back-end trio of Davis, Wilson and Edwards with Uehara as the change-of-pace guy, Duensing as a guy only needed to get out lefties, Montgomery as the long man and Strop and Rondon still available is top notch.
Keep in mind that fellow NL contenders like the Dodgers and
Washington Nationals
were reportedly also vying for Wilson, so getting him is also a victory in keeping him away from teams the Cubs are planning to face in the playoffs.
Even more bonus for the Cubs is that Wilson isn’t hitting free agency until after 2018. If Wade Davis walks in free agency — which seems the likely scenario — the Cubs could shift Wilson to the closer role for next season.
Avila, 30, is hitting .274/.394/.475 with 11 doubles, 11 homers and 32 RBI in 264 plate appearances this season. Youngster
Willson Contreras
is firmly entrenched as the starting catcher, so Avila will presumably be used in order to rest Contreras. Keep in mind that Contreras can handle left field, too, if the Cubs wanted to use him out there with Avila behind the plate. Rookie
Victor Caratini
will be sent back to the minors to make room for Avila.
Candelario, 23, is a career .136/.240/.250 hitter in 50 major-league plate appearances. He’s hitting .266/.361/.507 with 27 doubles, three triples and 12 homers in 81 games for Triple-A Iowa this season. He’s considered a high-upside prospect and was ranked as the number 96 prospect in baseball heading into the year by MLB.com.
Candelario can play first base or third base. With the Tigers, he’ll also have a shot at DH. While a prospect many like, he was pretty expendable for the Cubs, given that
Anthony Rizzo
and
Kris Bryant
are blocking him for the foreseeable future. He’s currently blocked in Detroit, too, by
Miguel Cabrera
, Nick Castellanos and
Victor Martinez
, but the Tigers are rebuilding, so stockpiling younger assets regardless of position is a good move.
Paredes is an 18-year-old shortstop and third baseman currently playing in Class A. Through 91 games, he’s hitting .261/.341/.399 with 25 doubles, seven home runs, 49 RBI, 49 runs and two stolen bases. He’s certainly projectable, but far away from the majors. Again, this makes sense for both sides.