Seattle Mariners Should Trade For the Chicago Cubs Nick Madrigal

Trading Chris Flexen After a Stong Season

I know that trading some of our favorite players may not be what people want, but it fixes a hole in the lineup while adding to the youth of the team. Chris Flexen might be that guy who we will see if a different jersey next season.

Flexen was a bit of a steal for the Mariners after pitching in Korea for a year. He was solid this season, but pitching is one thing that the Mariners are not lacking in their minor league system. Some of our minor league studs are George Kirby, Emerson Hancock, Brandon Williamson, Levi Stoudt, and Matt Brash.

All of them were in AA Arkansas and all had good years and all who could make the big show at some point this coming season.  With all the money the Mariners have to spend, they could also get a few free agents while the youngsters come up as and get their feet wet.

The Cubs are in need of some pitching and would welcome Chris Flexen, a 26-year-old pitcher who had 3.61 ERA and is under team control till 2027. Likewise, the Mariners need a second baseman and a 24-year-old who is under team control till 2027. It is a win-win scenario for both teams in terms of getting a player that fills a need of both teams.

Trading Kyle Lewis Because of His Knee History

Another trade option that people will not be fond of is trading Kyle Lewis. Just like the Chris Flexen trade, the Mariners have depth in the outfield. With Jered Kelenic already up and Baseball’s Number Two prospect Julio Rodriguez expected to arrive this summer, those two will slot in alongside Mitch Haniger, making the Mariners pretty strong in the outfield. If needed, the Mariners can always go sign a player to fill in until Julio arrives.

With this potential trade option, the Mariners would get DJ Herz, a hard-throwing lefty. Herz is soon to be a 21-year-old pitcher, who last pitched for the Cubs A+ ball club. During his 2021 season, Herz tossed 81.2 innings while striking out 131 batters and held a 3.31 ERA.  He would be a nice addition to a loaded pitching farm system because you can never have too many pitchers.

As for the Cubs, they would get last year’s Rookie of the Year winner. Lewis is coming off another knee injury and there is reason to worry about it and on the other hand, Madrigal is also coming off a torn hamstring that ended his season early. So both have injury concerns that they are trying to come back from but they are both young with the potential for full recoveries.

Trading From The Deep Farm System

This trade option is one that might sit better with fans mostly because it’s easier to say goodbye to players that we don’t really know. The Cubs are a team that is “Retooling”, “reloading”, or “rebuilding” or whatever you want to call it.

Over this past season, they traded four starters for young talent. So it seems like they would like to continue to add some more. With Seattle having one of the top minor league systems in the league, losing a couple of younger prospects won’t hurt them too badly.

The Cubs would be acquiring Zach DeLoach, the Mariners’ number six ranked prospect. A 23-year-old outfielder drafted in the 2nd round in 2020 and who last played for the Mariners AA club. The other prospect is 14th ranked pitcher Juan Then, 24th ranked pitcher Sam Carlson, and 27th ranked outfielder Cade Marlowe. All of them are good prospects but play a position that the Mariners have a lot of depth in already.

I don’t know if the Cubs would be willing to trade away a player like Nick Madrigal who they just got. But if the Mariners could find a way to trade for nick it would be a great fit for a team that really struggled for a solution at second base for most of the year.