Parkins & Spiegel: Are the Cubs more likely to be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline?

(670 The Score) After losing two of three games in their series against the rival Cardinals over the weekend, the Cubs dropped to 34-38 and now trail the NL Central-leading Brewers by 8.5 games.

It all begs the question as the trade deadline looms just more than six weeks away on July 30 – will the Cubs be buyers or sellers? In the mind of Score afternoon host Danny Parkins, it’s pretty clear what the answer would be if the trade deadline loomed this week.

"They are more likely to sell than buy at this point,” Parkins said. "Anyone want to dispute that?"

“I think it’s, sadly or awkwardly, still too early to say,” co-host Matt Spiegel responded.

Spiegel then pointed out that the Cubs didn’t decide to be buyers at the trade deadline in 2023 until they went on an eight-game winning streak in late July.

“Starting pitching gives you an opportunity to play a couple weeks of hot baseball,” Spiegel said.

Parkins left open the possibility for the Cubs to turn around their fortunes despite them having lost 16 of their past 23 games.

“They are more likely to sell than buy right now,” Parkins said. “Because all we talk about when we talk about the trade deadline is a projection, is a what will happen? What could be available? It’s all hypotheticals about the future.
Well, if the best predictor about the future is the past, this team right now is most likely to continue to play like it has played. Because it’s a representative sample at this point. They are what their record is.

“If the trade deadline were tomorrow, they would sell.”