Cubs rumors: Justin Upton for Starlin Castro a No-Go

The Chicago Cubs are the latest team to chat up the Diamondbacks concerning Justin Upton and find the asking price too high. According to Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago, the Cubs shut down trade talks when Arizona requested 22-year-old shortstop Stalin Castro in return for the 25 year old right fielder.

Upton has already vetoed a trade to the Seattle Mariners this off-season and his contract would also give him the power to reject a deal with the Cubs, Red Sox and Blue Jays as well. A number of teams have expressed interest in Upton, including the Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles and New York Mets but the consensus seems to be that Arizona GM Kevin Towers is asking for too much in return. Towers seems unconcerned with that notion, saying:

"We are not interested in giving away any of our young talented players. My job is to get the best players in order to win championships here in Arizona. That said, someone will have to give us equal value if we move one of our top players."

Upton has three years and $38M left on the contract extension he signed prior to the 2010. He is coming off of a down year in 2012, hitting .280/.355/.430 in 150 games- posting his worst slugging percentage thus far and his lowest OBP since his rookie season, but he is still a tremendous value given his price.

In 2011, he was an MVP candidate, hitting .289/.369/.529 and playing strong defense in right. Given all of the trade talk thus far, it seems likely that he will eventually be traded this off-season, but which team will pay Arizona’s price remains a mystery.