Well, after a quiet Winter Meetings, the Cubs finally got their man.
Kyle Tucker is headed to Chicago as part of a blockbuster trade with the Houston Astros. The Cubs are sending third baseman Isaac Paredes, pitcher Hayden Wesneski, and 2024 first-round pick Cam Smith in return.
Kyle Tucker to the Cubs for Isaac Paredes, Hayden Wesneski and Cam Smith is done, pending medicals, sources tell @TheAthletic
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) December 13, 2024
The New York Yankees, as expected, finished as the runner up in the Tucker sweepstakes, marking the second time this offseason that they fell just short of their pursuit of a superstar outfielder.
As Jack Curry tweeted the Yankees weren't willing to include Gil in the offer for Tucker. I've heard otherwise. Maybe I'm wrong and if I am I certainly do apologize for that. However I am led to believe the Yankees made a really strong push for Kyle Tucker.
— Max Greenfield (@GreenfieldMax18) December 13, 2024
There's plenty of fallout that will result following this deal — Cody Bellinger to the Yankees? Alex Bregman to the Red Sox? — but the immediate impact is such: the Cubs are significantly better, the Astros are worse but insulated against what might come in the coming months, and the Yankees... well the Yankees are going to struggle on offense in 2025.
Below are grades for each of the three teams impacted by this deal.
Chicago Cubs: A
Why not an A+? Especially since the Cubs kept Seiya Suzuki in the organization?
Well, for starters, Tucker is an impending free agent. He, like Soto when the Yankees acquired him one year ago, is a rental bat. The Cubs could always sign him to an extension, but that would require them to hand out a contract well beyond anything they've ever given in the past.
The Cubs will be in the same position with Kyle Tucker that the Yankees were with Juan Soto a year ago. A one-year rental, unless the Cubs' ownership is willing to give him a monster extension. It'll cost way more than the $184 million Jason Heyward deal.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) December 13, 2024
Second, while Wesneski was being phased out of the organization anyways, Paredes was acquired just five months ago with the intention that he'd be the third baseman of the future. And Smith, mind you, is already one of the best third base prospects in all of baseball after being drafted this summer.
This was a steep price to pay, even if it was less than what some Cubs fans were fearing. Tucker, for all his talents, is also entering an outfield logjam that won't be resolved simply by trading Cody Bellinger.
With all that out of the way — I mean, come on. How jazzed are Cubs fans right now? Tucker is the superstar this team has been dying for since the great Chicago Fire Sale of 2021, and he makes it a lot easier to believe the Cubs can claim a wide open NL Central in 2025, especially on the heels of the Devin Williams blockbuster that weakened the Milwaukee Brewers.
This was a move the Cubs had to make. If they can get Tucker to sign an extension, then this move will look even better in hindsight, but getting him in the building alone is enough for now. Plus, this frees up third base for top prospect Matt Shaw.
They're the big winners of this trade, and their grade reflects it.
Houston Astros: B-
Grading a trade like this immediately after it happens always means that the selling team's grade will displease fans. In truth, the Cubs' grade is obvious because they got a known quantity. The Astros are playing for the future, and their grade is the most subject to change down the line.
For now, it's fair to say the Astros did well enough in swapping out a rental bat and securing multiple long-term pieces.
Wesneski was utterly brilliant in his rookie year cup of coffee in 2022, befuddling hitters with his extreme sweeper, but he simply hasn't figured out how to get lefties out at the major league level. Still, he isn't even arbitration-eligible yet, meaning that Houston will have plenty of years to work with him on the cheap. He's had success as both a starter and reliever as well, giving him some extra value as a versatile arm.
Paredes is the most recognizable name going back to Houston, if only because the Cubs just acquired him at the 2024 trade deadline for a package headlined by fan-favorite Christopher Morel. He was awful in his half-season in Chicago (.633 OPS), but he was an All-Star with the Rays in the first half, and earned some down-ballot MVP votes in 2023. He's an immediate replacement plan for Alex Bregman, assuming the Astros lose him in free agency.
Smith is the big prize in this deal. He's shot up prospect rankings charts since being drafted 14th overall in the 2024 MLB Draft. The 6'3" third baseman made it all the way to Double-A by the end of the season, posting a gargantuan 1.005 OPS in 32 games across three levels. He's one of the most advanced hitters in the minor leagues already, and should have no problem filling one of the corner infield spots for Houston once he arrives in the big leagues.
Despite that strong haul, Tucker is (obviously) the best player in this trade. No matter how good Smith ends up being, he'll have a hard time living up to the production Tucker had in Houston.
This was a smart move that should keep Houston's championship window pried open a little longer, but you can't get an "A" when you'll be demonstrably worse in 2025 because of it.
New York Yankees: F
It's not normally the case that a team that isn't even involved a trade gets the worst marks across the board, but welcome to the post-Juan Soto Yankees.
They've done a great job rounding out their pitching staff over the last week, including bringing in Max Fried and the aforementioned Devin Williams, but who the heck is going to hit next Aaron Judge in the middle of the lineup?
There's still talented offensive contributors available — Pete Alonso and Alex Bregman chief among them — but the chances for them to secure a superstar talent are dwindling quickly.
It isn't possible to replace Soto with one fell swoop, though trading for Tucker would've come pretty close. Alas, the Yankees' depth chart remains littered with holes at every spot that isn't center field (Judge), shortstop (Anthony Volpe), and DH (Giancarlo Stanton).
No matter how many runs they keep of the board in 2025, they'll need to score some of their own in order to make it back to the World Series.