MLB insider questions Cubs for sticking with Willson Contreras

The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal questioned the Chicago Cubs’ logic of not trading catcher Willson Contreras on deadline day.

The MLB trade deadline has ended, and most of the names that were expected to trade ended up trading. When it comes to the Chicago Cubs, the team is shocking decided against trader Willson Contreras and outfielder Ian Happ. Contreras was the most surprising considering he will become a free agent at the end of the season.

While discussing MLB on FOX, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal quizzed the youngasked aloud if the team felt it was going to be hard to trade Contreras then why didn’t they try last offseason instead of by deadline?

You can listen to Rosenthal’s full comments below, courtesy of the FOX Sports: MLB Twitter account.

Ken Rosenthal asks Cubs if he doesn’t try to trade Willson Contreras sooner

Rosenthal says the reason Contreras stayed is because the Cubs didn’t get an offer from teams they had in mind.

In addition to talking about the Cubs, Rosenthal brings up that it could pose problems for Contreras as a free agent, citing questions about his defense and his at-bat. He then brings up that the team will likely make the qualifying offer to Contreras, which could limit his market. With the qualifying offer, any team that signs Contreras must give the Cubs a draft pick.

Instead of Contreras, the big catch to be traded at deadline was Christian Vazquez, who is also set to be a free agent after this season. The Boston Red Sox traded him to the Houston Astros for two prospects.

Contreras will be a name to watch this offseason, especially to see if he decides to re-sign with the Cubs or test the free hand with or without a qualifying offer.