The Chicago Cubs have added one of the biggest bats available at this summer’s trade deadline. The Cubbies are acquiring All-Star third baseman Isaac Paredes from the Tampa Bay Rays, reports ESPN. Tampa will receive Christopher Morel and pitching prospects Hunter Bigge and Ty Johnson, according to The Athletic. Neither team has announced the deal.
Paredes played in Tampa’s win over the Cincinnati Reds earlier in the day Sunday (TB 2, CIN 1) and went 0 for 2 with a walk. The 25-year-old is hitting .245/.357/.435 with 16 home runs this season, despite being in a slump over the last month or so. He was the Rays’ All-Star representative earlier this month. This is a long-term addition for Chicago — Paredes will remain under team control as an arbitration-eligible player through 2027.
For Paredes, this trade brings him full circle. He originally signed with the Cubs as an international amateur free agent out of Mexico 2015 and he began his pro career in their farm system. Chicago traded him, along with Jeimer Candelario, to the Detroit Tigers for Alex Avila and Justin Wilson at the 2017 trade deadline. Paredes was in Low Class-A at the time.
Paredes broke into the big leagues with Detroit and went up and down from 2020-21. He was traded to the Rays with a competitive balance draft pick for Austin Meadows just before Opening Day 2022. With Tampa, Paredes broke out when they got him to focus on pulling the ball. He is the game’s most extreme pulled fly-ball hitter (minimum 200 plate appearances):
- Isaac Paredes: 23.7% pulled fly balls
- Anthony Santander: 21.3%
- Jake Bauers: 21.0%
- Rhys Hoskins: 19.8%
- Danny Jansen: 19.6%
Statcast’s park factors say Wrigley Field suppresses home runs to 97% the league average for right-handed hitters, so it’s not a great ballpark for righty power hitters (Tropicana Field inflates righty homers to 103% the league average). That said, Wrigley Field can play like an extreme home run park one day and an extreme pitcher’s park the next depending on the wind.
Clearly, the Cubs believe Paredes’ extreme pulled fly-ball approach will translate well to Wrigley Field, and they also get a capable third baseman defensively. They moved Morel to third full-time this season and, frankly, it has been a disaster. He ranks dead last among all players at all positions with minus-12 outs above average. Tampa figures to move him to first base or DH.
Morel, 25, does offer enormous power. He has ranked among the league leaders in exit velocity throughout his young career, and he is slashing .199/.302/.372 with 18 homers this season. It’s possible that, once the Rays get him away from third base and he can focus more on his bat than his glove, Morel will blossom as a hitter. He’s under team control through 2028.
The Rays have had interest in Morel for quite some time. His name popped up in rumors this past offseason when the Cubs and Rays were discussing Tyler Glasnow. Tampa eventually sent Glasnow to the Los Angeles Dodgers for a package fronted by Ryan Pepiot, though obviously their interest in Morel remained. Now they’ve landed their guy.
Bigge, 26, made his MLB debut earlier this season, and has a 1.17 ERA with 23 strikeouts in 15 1/3 minor-league innings. He figures to step right into Tampa’s bullpen. Baseball America did not rank Johnson, 22, among Chicago’s top-30 prospects in their midseason update. The 2023 15th round pick has a 3.54 ERA with 81 strikeouts in 61 innings in Single-A this year.
Paredes is the latest player the Rays have traded away as part of their deadline firesale. Outfielder Randy Arozarena went to the Seattle Mariners, starter Zach Eflin went to the Baltimore Orioles, and reliever Jason Adam went to the San Diego Padres. First baseman Yandy Díaz and closer Pete Fairbanks could be next out the door.
The Cubs enter play Sunday in the NL Central cellar at 50-56. They are six games out of a wild-card spot. It’s possible the Cubs both buy and sell prior to Tuesday’s trade deadline. They’ve added Paredes for the long-term, but could also move starter Jameson Taillon or relievers like Mark Leiter Jr. and Hector Neris.
As for the Rays, they are 54-52 and only 3.5 games back of a wild-card spot. Clearly though, they believe they need a roster reset and have opted to sell at the deadline.
