Eric Sogard Out of Blue Jays Lineup After Recent Trade Discussions With Cubs
By Parker White
The Chicago Cubs don't have a lot of assets to make blockbuster deals at the trade deadline, but they are looking for a utility player to deepen this roster.
Toronto's Eric Sogard has been brought up in trade speculation in recent days and has been linked to the Cubs. You have to wonder if something is in the works at the moment, as Sogard is nowhere to be found in Friday night's lineup against Tampa Bay.
#BlueJays, #Cubs have had recent trade discussions about Eric Sogard, source says, and he is not in Toronto’s starting lineup today. The official explanation is a scheduled day off. ? @MLBNetwork @MLB
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 26, 2019
The Blue Jays are calling it a scheduled day off, but it's a hell of a time to put a player on the bench who is slashing .321/.357/.491 with seven RBI over the last 15 days, right?
Eric Sogard, who is expected to be moved before next week’s trade deadline, is not in the #BlueJays lineup for tonight’s game against the Rays but he is on the field stretching with his teammates.
— Laura Armstrong (@lauraarmy) July 26, 2019
It would be surprising if Toronto didn't move Sogard, who is not part of their future and not in the prime of his career. The 33-year-old infielder is also having a career year, where he's slashing .299/.363/.480 with 10 home runs and 30 RBI. It'd make plenty of sense for him to get a shot at the postseason, while he's at it.
The expectation is that we'd see more trade movement next week leading up to the deadline, but it might get started Friday night if Sogard ends up being moved to a contender.