Cubs receive strong trade deadline warning amid star pitcher buzz

The Chicago Cubs will probably be one of the more active teams in baseball between now and the MLB trade deadline, especially considering how much they need starting pitching.

The Cubs have put together a pair of 10-game winning streaks in 2026, but they have gone into a bit of a tailspin recently, having lost seven of their last nine games. While the beginning of this skid had a lot to do with a slumping offense, the pitching staff has been guilty recently, having allowed 31 runs the last four contests.

Chicago has been absolutely ravaged by injuries in its rotation, so the Cubs are expected to nab a top pitcher (or at least a very good arm) before Aug. 3.

The problem is that Chicago would need to pay quite a cost to do that, and it already moved top prospect Owen Caissie to acquire Edward Cabrera from the Miami Marlins over the winter. So is there anyone the Cubs absolutely shouldn’t trade this season?

Bleacher Report’s Joel Reuter has identified the team’s most “untouchable” trade chip: Moises Ballesteros.

Chicago Cubs warned not to trade Moises Ballesteros

Ballesteros has long been one of Chicago’s top prospects and is in his first full big-league season. He got off to a terrific start in 2026 but is now mired in a miserable slump, causing his numbers to dip significantly.

Regardless, the 22-year-old is still slashing a respectable .250/.308/.463 with six home runs and 20 RBI, and Reuter feels that the catcher’s offensive ceiling should result in him being off limits.

“After handing out extensions to Pete Crow-Armstrong and Nico Hoerner during the offseason, the Cubs offensive core is locked up and the pitching staff does not have a clearly untouchable piece aside from the injured Cade Horton. That leaves Ballesteros, who is making the most of an expanded role this year with a 122 OPS+ and 11 extra-base hits in 120 plate appearance,” Reuter wrote.

The downside to Ballesteros is that he may very well end up being a long-term designated hitter, which is the role in which he has actually found himself for most of this season.

Ballesteros has only started two games behind the plate in 2026, and while moving him to first base down the line is a possibility, he just isn’t a very good defender in general. That certainly limits his value to the Cubs, but it might also make him less valuable on the trade market.

So even if Chicago wanted to comprise a trade package centered around Ballesteros, rival clubs may not be all that interested, especially if they already have a DH.

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