The Chicago Cubs have been active this offseason and have made the necessary moves to go into Opening Day primed to compete for the National League Central title.
The additions of superstar outfielder Kyle Tucker and All-Star closer Ryan Pressly certainly will help the Cubs accomplish that endeavor.
The Cubs could use another top-of-the-rotation arm or another big bat to add more thump and contact to an already deep lineup.
The Cubs have been tied to sign free agent Alex Bregman and have been reported to trade for right-handers Dylan Cease and Michael King of the San Diego Padres. The Cubs have room to spend, prospects to trade, and can accomplish either move.
The Chicago Cubs are significantly below the first tax threshold
The Cubs are well below the first tax threshold the MLB imposes on teams before they start issuing financial penalties for teams that go over. Per the newest Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) that runs through next season, the first threshold for the luxury tax for this season is $241 million. The first penalty to be imposed, after exceeding the first threshold, is a 20% tax on all overages and increases from there.
A club that exceeds the Competitive Balance Tax threshold is subject to an increasing tax rate depending on how many consecutive years it has done so.
“First year: 20 percent tax on all overages
Second consecutive year: 30 percent
A third consecutive year or more: 50 percent”
Currently, the Cubs payroll sits at $179,834,000 million according to Cots Baseball Contracts, and they estimate that the Cubs project a 40-man CB Tax Payroll at $197,960,048 million. Per Cot’s calculations, this would put the Cubs $43,039,952 under the first threshold.
That much under the threshold, it’s hard not to be a little upset with owner Tom Ricketts saying that the Cubs don’t have any money and can’t compete with teams such as the Los Angeles Dodgers. Having $43 million to spend certainly is more than enough for the Cubs to go out and sign Alex Bregman to the contract he wants while still having money left over to either get another veteran reliever or another starter.
Money to burn on Bregman, Cease, and King
Bregman will be the most expensive, with him still demanding a six-year deal with roughly the same average annual value he had last season, which was $30.5 million. Spotrac lists Bregman’s market value as being worth a four-year $119 million deal for an AAV of $30 million. Bregman is a sure thing for the Hall of Fame once his career is done, and having him on the roster would benefit the Cubs no matter how expensive he will turn out to be.
Cease is expensive in another way, requiring a large sum in prospect capital to acquire him. According to some reports, the starting point the Padres wanted for Cease is Matt Shaw, and if that’s the case, then that is an immediate no for the Cubs. The reason is Cease is entering into the last year of his contract before becoming a free agent, and having Scott Boras as his agent, the likelihood of an extension happening is zero, with Boras always bringing his clients to market in their walk year. Giving up the amount of prospects it would take to acquire Cease on top of him owed $13.750 million is way too rich for the Cubs.
If the Cubs are to give up the prospects for a high-end starter, then it should be for King, who just settled in his arbitration case for $4 million and has a mutual option of $15 million for next season. Teams don’t pick up their side of the mutual option, but in this case, they would with, $15 million for a starting pitcher being very team-friendly. The question is, would King pick his end up?
The Cubs need to add one more player
The Chicago Cubs have an impressive roster already but need to add one more big-name player to go into the season fully ready to compete with the Milwaukee Brewers and the emerging Cincinnati Reds for the NL Central.
Adding Bregman, Cease, or King would certainly do that by giving the Cubs one of the best lineups in baseball or one of the best starting rotations in baseball.
Having any of the three would accomplish the Cub’s goal of making the playoffs this season and give the Brewers and Reds a run for their money.
Chicago Cubs: 1 major Opening Day roster dilemma
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