Details emerge on Giants-Astros failed Kyle Tucker trade

The Chicago Cubs and Kyle Tucker experiment has not gotten off to a great start. After the Astros made the bold decision to move Tucker, the Cubs struck quickly. They parted with their top prospect, starting third baseman and a solid pitcher for one year of Tucker and things already seem rocky. The arbitration deadline came and went, and unfortunately the two sides couldn't come to terms, setting both sides for a turbulent season ahead.

Most of the time, a few hundred thousand dollars is what separates the two sides. However, the Cubs want Tucker's services for $15M, while the outfielder petitioned for $17.5M. The confusing part is on the Cubs side as they aren't anywhere near the luxury tax and they obviously value Tucker's services, just not for $2.5M more...okay? That just seems like a poor way to handle a star player entering a contract year that you just gave up a ton for.

Even with the Cubs and Tucker's relationship already shaky, news emerged of another potential suitor and their hesitancy to match other aggressive offers. That team, according to Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic, was the San Francisco Giants. Baggarly stated that the Giants and new GM, Buster Posey, felt like they were making pretty aggressive offers, “to the point that [the Giants] were said to feel a bit uncomfortable with the players they were willing to sacrifice.” That's how it should be getting one of the game's premier hitters, even if it just for one year.

Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants, excluded top prospect, Bryce Eldridge in any Kyle Tucker trade talks

Baggarly went on to talk about why the Giants just couldn't match the same type of offer that the Cubs made. He stated that the offer to the Astros for Tucker did not include top prospect, Bryce Eldridge. Eldridge, the 16th overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, is a first baseman with an incredible amount of helium. Currently the 35th overall prospect in baseball, according to MLB.com, Eldridge hit .292/.374/.516 with 23 home runs making it all the way up to Triple-A (though it was just eight games). The 6'7 first baseman has elite power, earning a 60-grade power tool from MLB.com and it has been on full display.

The Astros demanding Eldridge for Tucker isn't all that surprising, but then again, neither is San Francisco's decision to exclude him in any trade talks. This likely played a large role in Tucker ended up with the Cubs instead of the Giants.