Cubs Are Getting Exactly What They Paid For When They Acquired Their Superstar

The Chicago Cubs are fully back on track after what was a tough beginning to the season when they suffered back-to-back losses in Japan to the defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.

Since then, they split a four-game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks before going up to Sacramento and sweeping the Athletics during what was an absolutely dominant showing from a star-studded lineup.

Notably, the Cubs went out this winter and traded arguably their best prospect along with existing Major League talent to the Houston Astros in exchange for Kyle Tucker, making it look like they are all in on this season.

With Tucker set to hit free agency next year, Chicago has to get the most they can out of him now since the future looks murky.

For now, no matter what the 28-year-old's impending free agency holds, it looks like the Cubs got the superstar they imagined when they put together the trade package to get him.

Through nine games this season, Tucker has slashed .324/.444/.784 with a ridiculous OPS+ of 240 along with four home runs and 11 RBI.

As of the team's Thursday off day, Tucker leads all of baseball in hits, RBI, doubles and total bases.

There's a lot of season remaining, but these are not just terrific numbers for Tucker out of the gate; they are MVP-caliber.

Last season, while he played just half the year, Tucker was on a similarly unbelievable pace for the Astros when he slashed .289/.408/.585 with 23 home runs, 49 RBI and a 4.7 WAR in just 78 games.

Asking him to keep up this exact pace throughout the season is a bit ridiculous and not exactly fair, but if he were able to accomplish that feat, he would potentially be looked at as the consensus best player in baseball.

Of course, this is a double-edged sword since the better Tucker plays, the more expensive he's going to be when he hits the open market. And for a Chicago franchise that hasn't extended many large contracts in the past, his increasing price would likely scare them off.

Nonetheless, the Cubs traded for Tucker to get his absolute best so they can take the next step as a franchise in their search for championship contention once again.

Whether or not he stays in Chicago for more than one season remains to be seen, but there is no question that Tucker is everything and more the Cubs gave up serious assets to acquire thus far.