The future of catcher Willson Contreras with the Chicago Cubs could possibly soon have a long-awaited resolution.

As it stands, Contreras will become a free agent at the end of the 2022 season. He is under team control for the ongoing campaign, with it being the third year that he is arbitration-eligible. However, the Cubs and Contreras have yet to find a solution to this matter, as the two sides are scheduled for an arbitration hearing on June 9.

As noted by the New York Post’s Jon Heyman, Contreras is set to be a “popular trade target” at the MLB trade deadline later this year. Heyman further added that one anonymous executive predicts that the “Cubs will want an arm and a leg” in exchange for the veteran catcher.

More so, Heyman recently noted that the Cubs “never came close to extending” Contreras.

There was much speculation surrounding Contreras’ long-term future with the Cubs ahead of last year’s MLB trade deadline. While the Cubs opted to part ways with the likes of Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo, they still elected to keep the two-time All-Star on the roster.

From Contreras’ standpoint, he has made clear before that he is “always open” to engaging in talks regarding an extension. On the other hand, Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer noted earlier in the month that there is no “tension” between him and Contreras.

Overall, Contreras has been off to a promising start to the 2022 season, which includes 15 RBI recorded and a career-high .383 OBP posted through 37 games played in the campaign.