When Will Chicago Cubs Know if They're Trade Deadline Buyers or Sellers?

When might the Chicago Cubs make a deal at the trade deadline? Perhaps the better question is when the Cubs will decide to make a deal?

It’s a difficult equation for the Cubs, writes MLB.com in a recent mailbag about what teams that are on the cusp of contention might do at the deadline.

That’s the rub for the Cubs. Frankly, that’s the rub for the entire NL Central.

Entering the weekend only the St. Louis Cardinals seem out of the race, and even then the Cards are only a good winning streak away from getting back into it. With Cincinnati leading — but by only a game — the Cubs will be well within striking distance of both the division and the Wild Card, no matter what happens against Philadelphia on Thursday.

It complicates the math. The division winner gets into the playoffs. But, given the strength of the NL East and NL West, the Central winner may be the only team from the division that will go to the postseason.

The Cubs, writes MLB.com, have to figure out if that’s worth the effort:

My guess is that the Cubs — not to mention the Brewers, Pirates, Guardians and even the Tigers — might wait until the final week of July before deciding whether to buy, sell or stand pat.

Right now, there’s no way of knowing if that limits options for the Cubs or expands them. But, if the Cubs go into sell mode, the targets for other teams are clear — pitchers Marcus Stroman, Julian Merryweather and Michael Fulmer, along with outfielder Cody Bellinger — would be the primary targets, MLB.com writes.

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