Former Chicago Cubs Slugger Continues Bizarre Trade Deadline Trend

Former Chicago Cubs slugger Christopher Morel is already off and running with the Tampa Bay Rays.

Jul 30, 2024; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Rays infielder Christopher Morel celebrates after hitting a home run. / Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports

Jed Hoyer must have the magic touch, because when he trades players away from the Chicago Cubs, they tend to do pretty well.

Just look at Christopher Morel, who's already off and running with his new team. After going just 2-for-18 in his final six games with the Cubs, he promptly bashed a solo home run in his Tampa Bay Rays debut on Tuesday, helping them rout the Miami Marlins 9-3.

On its own, Morel homering in his first game with his new team wouldn't seem particularly notable. But when it comes to players that Hoyer has traded away, it's a quantifiable trend.

Former Cubs who homered in their first game after being traded away by Jed Hoyer:

Anthony Rizzo - July 30th, 2021
Javy Báez - July 31st, 2021
Kris Bryant - August 1st, 2021
Christopher Morel - July 30th, 2024

— Uncle Jeff (@ebsoftball) July 31, 2024

The pattern dates back to 2021 -- Hoyer's first year as Chicago's president of baseball operations following Theo Epstein's departure. The Cubs were bad that year, finishing 20 games below .500 and spurring a midseason fire sale.

With several of the team's stars set to become free agents that winter, Hoyer moved most of them at the trade deadline, dismantling the aging core of the 2016 World Series champs. He sent Kris Bryant to the San Francisco Giants, Javier Baez to the New York Mets and Anthony Rizzo to the New York Yankees in a flurry of deals, hoping to replenish Chicago's farm system.

Rizzo, Bryant and Baez all responded the exact same way: by going yard in their first game for their new clubs.

Rizzo was first, homering for the Yankees on July 30. Baez followed suit, going deep for the Mets the following day. Not to be outdone, Bryant launched a bomb in his Giants debut on Aug. 1.

Morel is just following in their footsteps, but there's a clear lesson to be learned here. If a team is facing a hitter who Jed Hoyer just traded away, it should probably pitch around him.