Epstein not ruling out trading Baez, Bryant: 'We're at a transition point'

Major changes could be on the horizon for the Chicago Cubs.

Theo Epstein, the team's president of baseball operations, said on Monday that the club may look to move core players this winter, including superstars Kris Bryant and Javier Baez.

"Do you keep 'em for the long term?" Epstein said, according to Phil Rogers of Forbes. "Do you just keep 'em for two years? Or do you contemplate listening on trades for them? I look at them both the same. I think they're fantastic players. I don't think it's mutually exclusive. I think they're both hugely important.

"It would be hard to see them out of a Cubs uniform but we are at a transition point. You have to do what's best for the Cubs. I hope it includes both those guys."

Epstein also didn't rule out trying to sign both players to extensions. The two All-Stars are only under team control through the 2021 season.

"With both guys, we've had some level of discussion ... about them trying to find an arrangement that would keep them as Cubs longer (than two years), and we'll probably get around to doing that again this winter at some point," he said. "I'd love 'em to be Cubs but again, (with) all these players, we have to be open-minded."

Bryant posted a .903 OPS over 147 contests in 2019, while Baez finished at an .847 mark in 138 games.

Chicago (84-78) failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 2014. Manager Joe Maddon and the team parted ways Sunday.