Fox Sports’ baseball stud Ken Rosenthal dropped a video today discussing, among other things, the Chicago Cubs’ interest in Oakland A’s righty Sonny Gray.

Like Jose Quintana, whom the Cubs have already acquired, Gray would help not only down the stretch this year, but also into next year, when the Cubs will still have rotation openings. Thus, yesterday’s rumors that the Cubs are still in on Gray were a surprise only in the context of them going after two controllable starting pitchers; the rumors that the Cubs would want a pitcher like Gray have never been a surprise.

Gray, who has thrown four straight excellent games at just the right time for the A’s, would cost the Cubs Ian Happ or one of the other top young position players on the big league roster, according to Rosenthal, and he doesn’t see the Cubs going there.

Instead, Rosenthal sees it as more likely that the Cubs stick with what they have, and then explore the free agent market after the season. Alex Cobb and Tyler Chatwood come in for particular mention – unsurprising names, given that they will enter free agency among the youngest arms on the market.

So if Gray is a long shot for the Cubs, why is this all getting out there? Well, Rosenthal speculates, as we did with the latest batch of rumors yesterday, that it doesn’t hurt the Cubs (or the A’s, for that matter) for this word to get out there, since one of the other primary suitors for Gray’s services is believed to be the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers. Maybe it pressures the Brewers to make a move, and/or pay a steeper price.

We’ll keep on following …