Kyle Tucker, one of the marquee players to switch teams this past offseason, was traded to the Chicago Cubs from the Houston Astros in a high-profile deal.
The three-time All-Star’s arrival has energized the Cubs’ clubhouse, but the team’s next goal is securing Tucker for the long term.
Following the trade, the Cubs have set their sights on negotiating a contract extension that would keep Tucker in Chicago for the foreseeable future.
MLB.com reports that executives across the league are closely following the situation, with debates intensifying over whether Tucker should agree to any deal offered by the Cubs.
The conversation around Tucker’s extension gained further momentum after Vladimir Guerrero Jr. inked a massive 14-year, $500 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.
With Guerrero Jr. off the market, Tucker now stands as the most coveted free agent in next year’s class.
An anonymous executive in the National League weighed in on the situation, asserting that Tucker holds all the leverage in any potential negotiations.
“If he wants to stay in Chicago, he can always sign there in the winter,” the executive said. “Prior to that, I imagine it would take a massive overpay to get him to forgo an opportunity on the open market.
“Since he’s a couple years older than Vlad and doesn’t have the same tie-in with the Cubs that Vlad has with the Jays – or with the country, for that matter – I would be surprised if they would be willing to go far enough during the season to make him bite early.”
Tucker has only been with the Cubs since December after spending seven seasons with the Astros, making it difficult to predict his intentions for the upcoming offseason.
However, one executive suggested that Tucker and the Cubs could be a natural fit.
“If they’re indeed talking, that at least shows some interest on both sides,” the executive said. “The Cubs are a great place to play. I’m sure they want to keep him, which was part of the value of trading for him. I don’t see why it wouldn’t be a possibility.”
As the executive noted, the Cubs would be foolish to not be interested in locking Tucker up for the long-haul. The baseball-loving city is dying to have a star like Tucker turn them into perennial World Series contenders.
However, it’s not going to be easy – and it’s certainly not going to be cheap. With the expectation that Tucker could very well hit the open market, big-spending clubs are already planning their offers.
It should be noted that we have virtually the entire season left to play, and anything can happen – both on and off the field – so there’s only so much thought you can put into next offseason.
Having said that, do you think the Cubs will be able to keep Tucker in Chicago? … Or will his future end up being elsewhere?
At the end of the day, what type of contract do you see him getting???
