According to MLB Trade Rumors,

An American League official told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald that the Marlins' asking price for Hanley Ramirez is "not ridiculous." Miami wants quality young pieces in return for Ramirez, who earns $15MM in 2012, $15.5MM in 2013 and $16MM in 2014.

I don't love the guy. And I don't think the Cubs are in a position to win right now. But this intrigues me. Let's debate the pros and cons of trading for what once was a top-5 hitter in the majors.

The Pros:

• We'd have him for at least two years after this season, and we might be winning in 2014. Who's to say we can't extend him if he likes Chicago?
  
• Our 3B has been poor since losing A-Ram. Though I like Valbuena, he's not a long-term solution, and neither is Ian Stewart.
• He's not old. I like this move more than paying a free agent a ton of money for too many years.
• PR interest. It gives our team someone else for fans to get excited about.

The Cons:

• His elite days could be over. He'll still be a good bat, but SB isn't his focus anymore, so no betting on any more 30/30 seasons. (But he's basically on pace for a 20/20 year right now, assuming 600 PA.) In 23 career games and 100+ PA at Wrigley, his stats aren't impressive.
  
• He's not a good defensive player. I guess the good news is that on FanGraphs, his fielding WAR didn't get worse with the switch from SS (-4.8 in '11) to 3B (-4.9 in '12).
• His salary is still a decent amount, considering we're still paying for Soriano.If he really falls off a cliff, $16MM is quite a bit to pay for someone who used to be elite but now is just above average.
• Personality and attitude? Doesn't he have a bit of an issue there? Nothing major, maybe, but I'd be curious to see how he'd fit in, given we already have a face of the franchise in Castro.

I'm rather torn between considering it and saying don't bother. Of course, I haven't discussed what we'd have to give up, and maybe our minors pieces don't line up with what Miami wants. I'll leave that issue for others to tackle. Thoughts?