Cubs’ perfect trade offer for Marlins’ Sandy Alcantara

It seems like the Chicago Cubs are moving closer toward the trade market for a pitcher. And it looks like the Marlins might be a seller. And here is the Cubs’ perfect trade offer for the Marlins’ Sandy Alcantara.

Holding a record of 25-12 heading into Thursday, with a 3.5-game lead in the NL Central, the Cubs may not be able to maintain that status because of recent injuries. But where would they go for a starting pitcher?

How about Miami? That’s where a revitalized Sandy Alcantara currently works.

Cubs could deal prospects to get SP Sandy Alcantara

Standing at No. 4 in the most recent MLB power rankings, according to MLB.com, the Cubs need to be aggressive.

“The Cubs are rolling, already producing two winning streaks of seven or more games,” Jesse Rogers wrote. “Their current eight-game winning streak includes three consecutive walk-off wins over the Reds. Cincinnati manager Terry Francona noted how deep Chicago’s lineup is when Pete Crow-Armstrong batted ninth Tuesday.

“It’s a sign of the times for the Cubs, who are getting contributions from all 26 players on the roster.”

But starting pitcher Matthew Boyd just went down with an injury. He’ll be gone for a month, at least. Until then, the Cubs don’t have a pitching rotation that smacks of first-place status.

So they could send a pair of good prospects to the Marlins for the veteran right-handers. At the top of the list would be Jonathon Long. The first baseman looks like he will be major-league ready this year, according to MLB.com. His plate discipline is a plus.

“Long employs a patient approach at the plate, drawing a healthy amount of walks while making regular contact to all fields,” MLB wrote. “His bat speed and strength allow him to hit the ball hard, but he won’t fully tap into his plus raw power until he learns to drive balls in air more often to his pull side. He produces too many groundballs and can get passive at times, though that hasn’t stopped him from being productive against lefties and righties.

“He’s limited to first base, where he’s a decent defender. He doesn’t have much left to prove in the Minors, but Chicago doesn’t have an obvious opening for him in its lineup.”

And that’s why he’s the best hitter to send to the Marlins. But it will take more.

The Cubs don’t have a bunch of pitching depth at the top of their prospect list. And rest assured that they won’t be sending top prospect Jaxon Wiggins to the Marlins.

But they can offer another big-league-ready player in Pedro Ramirez, who is an infielder. The switch-hitter can run and also has some pop, according to MLB.com.

“Ramirez controls the strike zone better as a righty but generates most of his pop (and all 12 of his homers over the past two years) as a lefty,” MLB wrote. “He has good bat-to-ball skills from both sides, but they’re almost too good. Because he generates a lot of soft ground-ball contact and cuts into his ability to draw walks. He doesn’t hit balls hard or launch them in the air very often, so he may never provide more than 10-12 homers per season.

“Ramirez did a better job of using his solid speed on the bases in 2025, swiping a career-high 28 bags. His quickness and average arm fit best at second base, though he has spent more time at third base each of the past two seasons.”

What would the Cubs get in SP Sandy Alcantara

A nine-year veteran, Alcantara proved to be one of baseball’s best pitchers in 2022. He produced a WAR of 8.0 to lead the National League. His record was 14-9, and he posted a rock-solid 2.28 ERA.

However, since then, things haven’t gone as smoothly. He got knocked around in 2023, didn’t pitch because of injury in 2024, and got lit up in 2025 with a career-worst 5.36 ERA.

This year, he had been relatively solid until getting blown up for seven runs in 4.1 innings against the Orioles on May 5.

So, there are still questions as to what Alcantara brings to the mound.