Cubs trade away former top prospect

Sep 14, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Chicago Cubs batting helmet sits on the dugout rail before the Cubs play the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Cubs are hitting the shuffle button on their Spotify playlist.

Jeff Passan of ESPN reported Sunday that the Cubs are trading first baseman Matt Mervis to the Miami Marlins. They will be receiving utilityman Vidal Brujan from Miami in return, Passan adds.

The 26-year-old Mervis, a lefty hitter, is a former top prospect whom MLB Pipeline ranked as the No. 7 prospect in the Cubs organization as well as the No. 4 first base prospect overall before the 2023 season. But he has yet to show much at the big-league level, batting .155 over two seasons since his MLB debut. Mervis did hit .235 with 15 home runs and 43 RBIs over 81 Triple-A appearances last year though.

As for Brujan, he is a utilityman who is also 26 years old and a former top-100 prospect himself. Though he was designated for assignment by the Marlins earlier this month, Brujan (who hit .222 over 102 games last season) should bring value to the Cubs as a more seasoned and versatile player than Mervis. This news also comes after the Cubs parted ways with another top prospect in November.