I keep waiting for the Cubs to turn it around and well, I’m still waiting. Yeah, the injury luck has been insanely bad, but it’s not like this group hasn’t been back for a few weeks and guess what…not much has changed. The offense looked great through the first two weeks of April, but it’s been dog shit since May. Honestly, there aren’t too many spots that are magically going to be replaced, but the one area that can and should be a priority is behind the plate.

Yan Gomes is looking every bit of a 36-year-old catcher in his 13th MLB season and although you might not have expected him to be this bad in 2024, no one should be surprised that Gomes’ production has dramatically declined either. Meanwhile, Miguel Amaya hasn’t been as horrific as Gomes on offense, but he’s still been awful when compared to league average.

The Cubs enter Friday night’s game against the Cincinnati Reds with a 31-32 record, 5.5 games back of first place in the NL Central, but also with a half game lead for the second Wild Card spot. If the Cubs are serious about being a playoff team in 2024, then Jed Hoyer must act quickly to upgrade the catcher position that has killed the team all season long.

With that said, Cubs fans should be glad to hear that the Cubs are indeed talking with the Colorado Rockies, hoping to trade for All-Star catcher Elías Díaz.

Cubs in Trade Talks for Elías Díaz

The Cubs were first loosely linked to Rockies All-Star catcher Elías Díaz in late May, when The Athletic’s Jim Bowden answered how the Cubs could upgrade at the catcher position.

Via Athletic.

Elias Díaz of the Rockies is the trade target you’re describing, Brian. Díaz was the MVP of last year’s All-Star Game and finished the season with 25 doubles, 14 home runs and 72 RBIs for Colorado. This year, he’s carried a career-best slash line of .320/.358/.463 (125 OPS+). The 33-year-old will be a free agent after this season, which should make the trade cost for the Cubs (or any team) relatively affordable.

Sweet. However, that was purely speculation and simply finding a potential option that makes sense for the Cubs. It doesn’t mean much if Hoyer doesn’t actually pick up the phone.

Well, according to your favorite or least favorite Chicago radio host, the Cubs are indeed in trade talks with the Rockies for Díaz. During Friday’s Kap and J. Hood show on ESPN 1000, David Kaplan said the following regarding the Cubs and trying to get better at the catcher position as soon as possible.

Via ESPN 1000.

“So, I’m hearing that they are in discussions with the Colorado Rockies for Elías Díaz. He’s the Rockies catcher. He’s hitting .302, he’s got a .794 OPS, he’s obviously going to be moved, he’s 33-years of age – he’ll be 34 in November. He went to the All-Star Game last year. He’s a good player. Now, you’re going to have to give something up for Elías Díaz, but guess what I don’t want him July 28, I want him freaking June 7.”

Not only would Díaz give the Cubs a huge boost at the plate from the catcher position, he’d also be a big upgrade defensively. It’s bad enough that Gomes and Amaya have combined for a .176/.225/.259 slash line that comes out to a 39 wRC+, but both catchers have been dreadful throwing out base runners, while Díaz is at 30% throwing out base stealers in 2024. Overall on defense, Díaz has positive marks in defensive runs saved and framing stats, while Gomes and Amaya are on the negative end of those defensive metrics.

Díaz will be a free agent following the 2024 season, so a trade for him should be similar to the one Hoyer pulled off last summer when he dealt for corner infielder Jeimer Candelario. The big question should be how aggressive will Hoyer be in these trade talks because as Kaplan passionately said, the Cubs need an upgrade sooner rather than later and the front office has a healthy farm system to work with, so there’s no excuse not to push the envelope way before the trade deadline at the end of July.