Contreras returns to top of Cubs Trade Chip Power Rankings originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Happy Joc Pederson Day.
It was on the Thursday after the All-Star Game, before the Cubs opened the second half of the season, that last summer’s nine-man roster purge began with their trade of Pederson to the Braves for prospect Bryce Ball.
Let The Purge 2.022 begin.
A year ago, the Cubs were just two games under .500, 8 1/2 games out of first and in third place when they started a selloff that included five former All-Stars, their top three back-end bullpen arms and, of course, three All-Star, championship core players in Anthony Rizzo, Javy Báez and Kris Bryant.
This time, they’re 22 games under .500, 14 1/2 games out of first and in fourth place as they open a three-game series in Philadelphia Friday with 70 games to play — leaving the biggest questions who’s going first and how close to the deadline do the Cubs go before trading All-Star championship-core catcher Willson Contreras.
Even as the clock ticked inside the final three weeks before the deadline, Contreras said the looming deadline still was not weighing on his mind.
Not that it’s something he wants.
“It’s something that I’m not worried about,” he said.
Besides, he’s already cleared the one, big hurdle that was close to his heart this month — avoiding a pre-All-Star trade and assuring he would represent Chicago in a Cubs uniform at least one more, third time. And alongside his brother William of the Braves, no less.
Beyond that, Contreras said he hasn’t spent a lot of time wondering how close to the deadline the Cubs might wait to leverage the market for what might be the top hitter on the market this side of a Juan Soto lottery-ticket blockbuster.
“They’re probably waiting for the right time, to hear offers from other teams to see if they’re getting good offers to make trades or not,” said Contreras, who says he still hasn’t heard any indication the team is considering a last-minute extension offer.
If anything, he keeps that possibility in mind when he considers when and where he might end up.
“That’s part of the business. You have a great guy; you have a good team, and you have a guy that everybody loves, right?” he said. “But you’re going to wait to see, ‘what type of offers do I get from other teams, and if it doesn’t make sense I’ll keep my guy.’
“That’s how I see it. I don’t know if I’m right or wrong. I’m putting myself…