Darwin Barney, other Cubs not thrilled by trade rumors

Barney: Press, man…taking the .310 OBP on the road?

All it really said was that other teams have shown interest in him, which isn’t surprising considering his contract level, decent bat, an uptick in gap power this year and strong defensive play that one American League evaluator mentioned first after raising Barney’s name unsolicited.

‘‘It’s almost funny to read some of the stuff because it’s so frequent,’’ Barney said of trade rumors that have circled the Cubs like vultures since May. ‘‘But it’s just part of the game, and it’s part of being on a team that’s not necessarily in contention at this time of the year.’’

...Barney is just one of the many Cubs finding his name in rumors these days. He’s also one of the many tweener-status guys on the roster — club-controlled players young enough to become parts of the Cubs’ next-generation contender but not so young or so All-Star-upside to be considered slam-dunk parts of the next core.

Manager Dale Sveum said he thinks Barney can be part of that.

‘‘Because of his defense, which he already does, I think he’s just a few mechanical things away from being a pretty darn good hitter in the big leagues, too,’’ Sveum said of a guy who took a .270 career average into Friday night’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.