As trade deadline approaches, Cubs have plenty of moveable parts

When analyzing the Cubs roster, there's clearly potential for a massive sell-off by the trade deadline.

But it all depends on what management decides to do: Maximize the return right now, keep some pieces with next season in mind or something in between. There are plenty of trades that could be made, but the Cubs started the year selling the idea the rebuild is over, so who knows?

But let's take a guess and rank the most likely Cubs to be traded by Aug. 1, knowing there are bound to be surprises.

1. Marcus Stroman, RHP: He's said about 50 times he'd prefer to stay with the Cubs long-term and clearly thrives off the atmosphere at Wrigley Field.

But if the season ended today, Stroman would conservatively finish among the top 10 in NL Cy Young voting, so that makes him the type of player that could push a team into the World Series. There should be multiple offers and maybe a chance for the Cubs to land a power-hitting prospect.

2. Kyle Hendricks, RHP: This would be a tough one for Cubs fans, but starting pitching is where the Cubs have depth. They could deal two of their 30-something starters and finish the year with Hayden Wesneski and the underutilized Javier Assad in the rotation, or call up Ben Brown from Iowa.

When they sent Wesneski to Iowa to get stretched out before the break, it seemed to signal the intentions.

3. Yan Gomes, C: The Cubs have three catchers on the roster, so there's no strong need to hang onto Gomes. Whether there's a team willing to trade for a catcher remains to be seen, but Gomes is hitting well this season and has played in two World Series.

4. Cody Bellinger, OF-1B: Bellinger would be a hot commodity on the trade market, no doubt. But this is where the Cubs might pause to consider the future and wonder, "How can we trade our best hitter when offense has been such a weakness?"

In theory, they could keep Bellinger as a long-term first baseman while still bringing up top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong for center field. But they could also lose him as a free agent this winter. If Bellinger departs in a trade, it's conceivable PCA gets called up in August.

5. Michael Fulmer, RHP: Since June 1, Fulmer has a 1.33 ERA. Maybe it's too much to ask Jed Hoyer to pull off another reliever swap like last year, when he got Wesneski and Brown for Scott Effross and David Robertson, but he can try.

6. Mark Leiter, Jr., RHP: Most teams like relievers who throw in the high 90s. Leiter is a change of pace, splitter specialist who does very well against left-handed hitters (.157 average). So assuming the Cubs aren't going to move Adbert Alzolay, Leiter could be a bullpen target among contending teams. On the other hand, he is under team control for a few more years.

7. Drew Smyly, LHP: He hasn't had much success lately, but if any team is looking for a veteran left-hander, the Cubs would surely listen.

Looking at the rest of the roster, reliever Julian Merryweather could draw some attention, but the Cubs have been searching for a reliever who can throw in the high 90s and finally found one on the waiver wire last January. So the thought here is they'd be reluctant to part with him.

You could say the Cubs have a crowd at second base with Nico Hoerner and Christopher Morel, but there's very little chance either of those guys is going anywhere. There's probably not much trade interest in Nick Madrigal, Patrick Wisdom or Trey Mancini.

Mike Tauchman is 32, so the Cubs would likely listen to offers, but he'd also be a great fit next year as a spare outfielder if Crow-Armstrong moves in.

Twitter: @McGrawDHSports