Imrem: Why Cubs, White Sox should make a trade

During this week's all-star break, the Cubs and White Sox should keep something in mind:

There's no such thing as a bad baseball deal any more than there's a bad day on the golf course or a bad scoop of ice cream.

The nonwaiver trade deadline will be two weeks away when the Sox, Cubs and 28 other major-league teams get back to work Friday.

Trades are the greatest. The only thing better is more of them. The only problem is there aren't enough of them.

Forget the old silliness that the best trade is one that's good for both teams.

Like, wouldn't the Sox love to trade John Danks for the entire Cubs farm system right now? Wouldn't the Cubs love to trade Edwin Jackson for Chris Sale?

Seriously, would Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer tell Sox GM Rick Hahn, “Wait, stop for a moment, I think you can get more for Sale than that”?

No, a good guess is that Hoyer wouldn't say that unless he was the kind of mugger who would admit, “Of course I stole your wallet” and then give it back along with the cash, credit cards and photos of your dog.

Any general manager more likely would say something like, “We sure do like some of the prospects you gave us but hated to give up Danks' 5-plus ERA in the deal.”

Look, flat-out the best July trade is one in which a team gets a future Hall of Famer for somebody who is selling insurance by August.

Sorry, all this has been a long way to get around to wondering not only what the White Sox and Cubs will do before the deadline but what they should do.

It would help if either team knew exactly who and what it is heading into the break.

Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta said Sunday afternoon in Wrigley Field, “I think we have a good idea who we are, but I don't think there's a definitive answer for that.”

Arrieta had just beaten the White Sox 3-1 to boost the Cubs' record to 47-40.

The Cubs would be in if the playoffs started today, but does that mean they should exchange a chunk of their future for the chance to make a run through the postseason?

Darn right they should. The Cubs haven't run through the postseason in 107 years and might not get another opportunity for another 107 years.

The Cubs are a big-market buyer, and big-market buyers should think bigger than to rummage through garage sales in low-market neighborhoods.

Then again, if the Sox had completed a series sweep Sunday … well, maybe the Cubs would be better off holding on to those prospects.

The line between “daring” and “don't” is that thin.

As for the White Sox, they were feeling pretty good about themselves until Arrieta reminded them that they aren't close to .500 despite a recent encouraging run.

Sox manager Robin Ventura was asked whether he was baffled by his team — you know, as in who and what these guys are.

The manager of a legitimate playoff contender isn't asked whether his team is baffling. But the Sox were so bad for so long and now pretty good for a while.

So what should the White Sox do before the deadline?

As simple as this sounds, the Sox should do whatever is best for them: trade for the present, trade for the future, trade for the best offer, trade one way or the other.

Both the Cubs and White Sox should make a significant deal, with themselves if necessary, maybe Jose Quintana to the North Side and Kyle Schwarber to the South Side.

Then they should play some golf and have some ice cream.

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