Yu Darvish to the Cubs: What Does It Mean?

Well, the rich got richer today, as the Chicago Cubs landed the top free agent pitcher on the market, Yu Darvish.  They signed him to a 6-year, $126 million contract, which could be worth more up to $150 million with escalators, and an opt-out after 2016.  So, the Cubs rotation of Darvish, Jon Lester, Jose Quintana, Kyle Hendricks, and Tyler Chatwood is easily one of the most formidable in all of baseball.  The Cubs are likely the early favorite for the NL crown.  But, what does this signing mean for the rest of MLB?

- The contract likely sets the market for Jake Arrieta, Lance Lynn, and Alex Cobb.  Darvish was considered the top pitcher on the market, and only got $21 million a year for 6 years.  That will likely be the most a player will get for years, so any higher annual salary will have to be for fewer years.  A team like my Nationals could swoop in and grab Arrieta (who is represented by Scott Boras, the same agent as most of the Nats' stars), for a 3 year deal for around $65 million, minimizing the long term commitment and risk for the franchise while still giving Arrieta a nice pay day.  It is more likely that, while Arrieta will get a deal like that, Lynn and Cobb may be stuck getting deals slightly under $100 million.

- The Brewers, Twins, and Dodgers were all linked to Darvish at some point.  Now that he is off the market, look for those teams to get into the sweepstakes for the remaining FA's in a big way.

- This could be a loss for a team like the Orioles, who have expressed some interest in Lynn on a short term "show me" deal, but with those other teams missing out on Darvish, those scorned franchises may be more willing to offer Lynn and Cobb multi-year deals.

- An interesting note for fellow Nats fans- with this deal, the Cubs now have $144 million in salaries lined up for next season already, and that is before arbitration salaries for the likes of Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber, Kyle Hendricks, Javier Baez, and Addison Russell.  Curiously, that may make it much harder for them to sign Bryce Harper.  The Nationals, meanwhile, only have $88 million in salaries lined up for 2019 before arbitration for Anthony Rendon, Michael A. Taylor, and Tanner Roark.  They will have the money to sign Bryce to a massive deal, and still have some left over to add pieces to their rotation.  This, of course, assumes he would want to stay.



So, Yu has a home, the Cubs are even better, and the Hot Stove might finally heat up, all with Spring Training less than a week away.  Baseball, here we come!