Low Price, High Reward: Branyan and Bedard Could Be Good Fits For Cubs

On Friday, the St. Louis Cardinals acquired Matt Holliday from the Oakland Athletics. In my opinion, the move makes the Cardinals the favorites in the very tight NL Central. 

The additions of both Mark DeRosa and Matt Holliday make the Cardinals lineup one of the more potent lineups in the league. 

Does Cubs GM Jim Hendry have the needed resources to respond to the Cardinals trade? It's just a matter of looking outside the box. A phone call to Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik could go a long way in filling two glaring wholes.

The Cubs are in desperate need of a left handed bat. Enter Russell Branyan—not a huge name, but he has tremendous power. 

The 33-year-old found his stroke in Milwaukee last year, hitting 12 home runs in 132 at-bats while hitting .250 with an OBP of .342. Branyan has carried that success with him to Seattle. He's currently hitting .268 with 24 Home runs playing in the Northwest. 

The 11-year veteran has played for eight organizations and will be a free agent at season’s end. While Branyan has primarily played at first base this season, he has plenty of experience in the outfield and at third base. The Cubs could certainly move him around between third, first, left field, and right field. 

Before anyone mentions it, I am aware that Branyan strikes out a ton, and is a career .235 hitter. That said, the Cubs are looking for a hot bat that can help them down the stretch. Branyan can be that guy.   

The injury to Ted Lilly is certainly going to set the Cubs back a little. With all due respect to Kevin Hart, the Cubs need to go outside the organization to fill his spot. 

Enter Erik Bedard. Honestly, Bedard is the American League version of Rich Harden. He strikes out a lot of hitters, but he doesn't stay healthy. The 30-year-old is 5-2 with a 2.70 ERA. He has allowed just 63 hits in 80 innings while striking out 84. 

Hitters are hitting just .213 against him. While I certainly wouldn't sign him as a free agent, I think it would be a low-risk high-reward trade. With Lilly being out for three to four weeks, Bedard could fill his spot, and possibly move to the pen when and if Lilly returns. 

The best part of adding Branyan and Bedard is that it won't cost a lot. Both have minimal contracts, and are free agents at season’s end. Certainly, Sean Marshall and Jake Fox would be the centerpiece of a move like this. The Cubs would also have to give up a mid-level prospect. 

In the long term, a trade like this will favor the Mariners. That said, it will favor the Cubs in the short term. The Cubs are short on cash, but not on options.