Cubs trade idea lands them former Cy Young Award winner for postseason push

One would expect a batch of things person gone correct for nan Chicago Cubs to unfastened up a five-game lead successful nan National League Central, but that has not been nan lawsuit pinch their starting rotation. 

 It took conscionable 1 period for them to suffer their apical 2 starting pitchers, arsenic Justin Steele suffered a season-ending elbow wounded and Shota Imanaga landed connected nan injured database pinch a hamstring issue. Young right-handers Ben Brown and Cade Horton person been inconsistent astatine best, and seasoned Jameson Taillon has allowed a league-leading 16 location runs contempt a misleading 3.54 ERA. If not for 1 of Major League Baseball’s champion offenses and nan astonishing heroics of journeymen Matthew Boyd and Colin Rea, nan Cub's spotty rotation whitethorn person already sunk nan team. 

Even pinch Imanaga group to return successful nan coming weeks, it’s clear nan Cubs rotation is simply a notch beneath nan different National League contenders. As nan waste and acquisition deadline looms and nan Cubs statesman to group their sights connected October, nan Cubs will beryllium progressive successful pursuit of a frontline starter, and Newsweek’s Andrew Wright believes they could find a astonishing lucifer successful reigning Cy Young Award victor Chris Sale. 

“Sale is not a sanction that would've been thought of astatine nan opening of nan season, but he has now go an intriguing action owed to nan struggles from nan Atlanta Braves,” Wright wrote. “Chicago's pitching unit has nan seventh-fewest number of strikeouts, truthful nan punchout expertise and worldly that Sale has would beryllium an fantabulous addition.”

Even arsenic nan Atlanta Braves person collapsed astir him, Sale has continued to beryllium 1 of nan champion pitchers successful baseball, ranking seventh successful nan National League pinch a 2.79 ERA and 2nd successful strikeouts pinch 107. Though Sale has an $18 cardinal nine action for 2026 that is almost definite to beryllium picked up, nan 36-year-old would undoubtedly invited an opportunity to transportation successful nan postseason aft missing nan Braves Wild Card bid past season, and this year's Braves squad is already 9.5 games retired of nan 3rd Wild Card spot. 

Sale is not without his risks, however, some successful position of nan imaginable superior it would return to get a pitcher of his caliber and his lengthy wounded history. Yet if nan Cubs are superior astir maximizing this existent contention window, which whitethorn beryllium nan only 1 they get pinch impending free supplier Kyle Tucker, they would make a beardown push for nan early Hall of Famer. 

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