The Cubs came out of the All-Star break with a feeble showing in their first two series, scoring just nine runs in six games to maintain their last-place pace. And while that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re going to hold a fire sale, Jed Hoyer made it pretty clear they’re punting on the remainder of this season. Only trouble is that their suboptimal roster construction and poor offensive performance means they don’t have too many players whose value can be maximized at the deadline.
Provided they’re not dumb enough to actually consider trading Justin Steele, their most valuable trade chip may actually be Jameson Taillon.