The Chicago Cubs, as most everyone probably knows by now, failed to come to an agreement with the newly acquired Kyle Tucker and his people on a 2025 salary, thereby forcing an arbitration hearing.
The Cubs filed at $15 million while Tucker filed at $17.5 million.
A Prelude To A Baseball Divorce?
This failure to reach an agreement is a prelude to a baseball divorce, as Tucker is set to become a free agent at the end of the coming season. It is the baseball world equivalent of a belligerent husband missing his first marriage counseling session. And, in this scenario, Tucker may be the skeptical second wife becoming increasingly disinterested in saving the doomed relationship.
The failure to reach an accord is not the end of the world for the Cubs-Tucker relationship– the two sides still have time to reach an agreement before an arbitration hearing is set. But it IS a terrible way to kick off a relationship that, for all intents and purposes, seemed to be all but doomed anyway.
You see, after the 27-year-old Tucker has his typical Kyle Tucker season, he’ll be on the open market, demanding BIG money. He’ll be demanding the kind of money that The Ricketts Family won’t be likely to pay and for more years than they care to accept. Some estimates have Tucker asking for $35 million a year for nine years, making it a contract of $315 million.
Some believe that to be a conservative guestimate.
“If he has a good year and stays healthy, I don’t think $500 million is out of the question. He’s one of the most underappreciated players in baseball,” Robert Murray said in a recent edition of the Baseball Insiders podcast.
Chicago Cubs Looking Silly
So, Cubs ownership holding firm over a $2.5 million disagreement with Tucker doesn’t body well for their state of mind when it comes to keeping the all-star.
As a matter of fact, it looks downright silly for the Cubs to be pinching pennies when it comes to someone who cost them so much in trade capital (Issac Paredes, Hayden Wesneski, Cam Smith). It’s a little like Elon Musk bemoaning Starbucks charging 25 cents for a cup of water.
Cynical Business Operations?
But maybe the Ricketts are alright with burning a bridge over the kind of money one assumes their yacht maintenance and docking fee would be (they do have a yacht, right?). Maybe they’re okay with it because they have absolutely zero intention of extending Tucker, beyond a token offer for the sake of public relations.
If that’s the case, then that’s some cynical business operations right there. It would demonstrate a “win once every few years to keep customers engaged” philosophy. It would be the ultimate mean-spirited tease to a beyond-loyal fan base that has already been put upon to pay more and more for, what many would say, is a lesser and lesser team and a poorer and poorer fan experience. Heck, the Ricketts even put all those gloriously beautiful free WGN games behind a paywall.
It’s going to make for a bittersweet playoff run (if the Cubs get to the playoffs), as fans watch the team’s new star lead the Cubs to victory, knowing that he’s a one year-and-done impact player on a team destined to go back to second or third place.
And then that “bittersweet” will tour to acrid bitter as Tucker jumps into the open arms of a major market team that actually wants to win on a consistent basis.
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