Jed Hoyer's Patience in Free Agency May Pay Off

Will he outwait Scott Boras?

Cody BellingerPhoto byCreative Commons: Alan Light

Cubs heads baseball honcho, Jed Hoyer has taken some heat this offseason for lack of activity, but his patience may pay off. Thus far in this offseason, Hoyer has added free agent starting pitcher, Shoto Imanaga, relievers Yency Almonte and left-handed hitting corner infielder, Michael Busch.

So, the bullpen definitely looks stronger, plus, I think the starting rotation will also be better. I think Imanaga will be an upgrade over Stroman, plus younger guys like Jordan Wick and Javier Assad may actually get a chance to pitch. It was like former Cubs’ manager, David Ross had to have gun to his head to use a rookie.

The Cubs should also be better just by willing to look at young players rather than wasting at bats on Trey Mancini, Eric Hosmer and Tucker Barnhart.

But what about Bellinger?

I hope the Cubs sign him, but they are prepared to go forward without him, which reduces Scott Boras’ bargaining power. I’m thinking that Bellinger’s price tag is lower than what it was a couple of months ago. Will the Cubs sign Bellinger? I don’t know. I still think they will. I remember the Cubs waited before signing Dansby Swanson last off season.

Worst case scenario, the Cubs roll with PCA and Mike Tauchman in center, with Michael Busch at first. I like the Cubs better with Bellinger, but at some point, hopefully sometime next season, PCA takes over in center for the Cubs for the next ten years.

Third base is a point of concern. Last season’s mix of Nick Madrigal, Patrick Wisdom and Miles Mastrobuoni didn’t cut it. Maybe Chris Morel will get a shot. Or maybe the Cubs will invest in Matt Chapman.

If none of those guys pan out, last year’s first round draft pick, Matt Shaw may be fast tracked. His arm is considered a little short to play third, but so was Nick Madrigal’s who did an excellent job defensively at third last season. Shaw’s bat looks to be the real deal.

The Boras 4 are still in play

Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapman and starring pitchers Jordan Montgomery and Blake Snell are all still in play. Of those four, Matt Snell has reportedly had an actual offer. The Yankees are reported to have offered Snell a six-year, $150 million contract. He is looking for a nine-year, $270 million deal. That’s quite a gap.

Look for the Cubs to snag at least one of those guys, most likely Bellinger. I would think the market, and therefore the offers for the Boras 4 would have shrunk at this point. We will see. I suspect there are a lot of baseball fans and execs who are hoping to hear Scott Boras utter those famous words of George Costanza:

There was shrinkage!