The Leftorium: Shopping for a Lefty Bat

Looking through the Cubs roster, there really aren’t a ton of holes. The trades for Mike Montgomery and Aroldis Chapman addressed the needs in the pen, but perhaps the largest hole left on the Cubs roster is a left-handed outfield bat. Ever since Kyle Schwarber went down in April the Cubs have been searching for a replacement from the left side. They tried to go cheap for a replacement by bringing Chris Coghlan back, but his injury has left that hole open once again. Luckily for the Cubs, left-handed bats might be the most prevalent thing available at the deadline. Here are the main guys the Cubs might have some interest in.

Josh Reddick, Oakland Athletics
To me, Reddick is the name that makes the most sense on this list. The 29-year-old was drafted by Theo Epstein and apparently Theo once told him that he would not trade him. Almost immediately after Theo left the Red Sox, Reddick was traded to Oakland. Reddick has been remarkably consistent, but slightly injury prone, as an Oakland A,and 2016 has been no different. He has a career best .302 tAV, but has also missed some time with a broken thumb. While the defense has taken a bit of a hit in recent years, Reddick still has the reputation of being a pretty solid defender. He is probably a platoon guy at this point as he’s much better against right-handers, but that fits the Cubs well, as they have Jorge Soler, Kris Bryant and Willson Contreras all from the right side in left field. Reddick will be a free agent after the 2016 season, which also might be preferable for the Cubs given that they will have Kyle Schwarber back for 2017. When you add everything together, it’s hard to imagine a better fit than Reddick for the Cubs in the week or so leading up to the trade deadline.

Jay Bruce, Cincinnati Reds
Jay Bruce is doing everything in his power (literally) to make sure that the Reds get the absolute best return they can for the 29-year-old. After two down seasons, Bruce has bounced back in a huge way, posting a .314 tAV and hitting 25 home runs so far in 2016. He comes into the deadline as one of the hottest hitters in baseball, clubbing a home run in five consecutive games at the time of writing. Bruce does not have the defensive reputation that Reddick does, but he certainly won’t kill you. Unlike Reddick, he is not a pure rental, as he has a $13 million team option that at this point will almost surely be exercised. Because of the power surge and the extra year of control, Bruce will likely be pricier in terms of acquisition cost than Reddick. Because of this, I’m not sure the Cubs will be interested, but they will definitely check in to see what the price will be.

Seth Smith, Seattle Mariners
Seth Smith is the absolute perfect strong side platoon outfielder. The 33-year-old has always hit righties well, to the tune of a .834 career OPS and that is no different this year. Smith, like Bruce, isn’t a great defender but the bat might be exactly what the Cubs are looking for. Smith has been protected so far and only has 26 plate appearances against left-handed pitching all year, which has helped him keep his tAV at .299 for the season. Smith also has a cheap team option for 2017 ($7 million) that will most likely be exercised so he comes with one and a half years of control. The cost for Smith should not be overwhelming and he might even be the cheapest in terms of acquisition cost on this list. If the Cubs miss on Reddick, Smith is probably the best back-up plan for the Cubs.

Carlos Gonzalez, Colorado Rockies
Carlos Gonzalez probably has the highest upside of anyone on this list, but he is also the most expensive, both in terms of acquisition cost and contract. Gonzalez is controlled through 2017 and is still owed about somewhere around 25 million. Cargo has a .297 tAV so far in 2016, though like anyone coming out of Colorado, people worry about how he will perform outside of Coors Field. This year, Cargo has a 1.103 OPS at Coors Field and just a .740 OPS away from Colorado. While Coors splits don’t tend to explicitly translate, it is certainly something to monitor if Gonzalez is traded. While he certainly would be a great addition to the Cubs lineup, given the cost I’m not certain the Cubs should be aiming quite this high in terms of an outfield bat acquisition. However, Cargo remains an interesting name to monitor as he would certainly be a welcome upgrade to the Cubs offense.

Carlos Beltran, New York Yankees
The 39-year-old Beltran just continues to hit. The switch-hitting outfielder/DH is probably better suited for the latter role these days, but there is no denying how good the bat has been in 2016, currently at a .306 tAV. The 19-year veteran also has a career 1.115 OPS in 200+ postseason plate appearances. While the glove might be bad, the Cubs have shown so far this year that they are willing to sort of punt left field defense in order to get a solid bat in the lineup. Beltran might be another guy to add to that list. I do worry that the home run totals will take a dip if you take him out of the home run friendly Yankee Stadium (14 of his 21 home runs are at home), but if he can stay healthy there is no doubt that he can help a contender down the stretch. Beltran is another guy whose contract is up at the end of 2016, so he would be a pure rental. I can’t imagine the acquisition cost would be too steep, but you never really know at the deadline.

All in all, the options are plentiful if the Cubs are looking for a big bat from the left side to help complement all of the current right-handed options that they have. Due to past front office connections, current performance and likely acquisition cost, I still think that Josh Reddick is the most likely from this list. No matter what, I’m sure the Cubs will at least check in on all these names before the deadline and Cubs fans would be happy to come away with any of these bats to help the offense out down the stretch run.

Lead photo courtesy Tim Heitman—USA Today Sports.