Marcus Stroman’s vocal desire to secure a contract extension with the Chicago Cubs has not been met with mutual excitement.
Marcus Stroman and the Chicago Cubs feel like a great match. Underrated, scrappy, and with a pitch arsenal unlike most other starters in the MLB in the Cy Young race, Stroman fits like a glove at Wrigley Field that is similarly unlike most other stadiums in the MLB.
Chicago, since 2016, hasn’t exactly blown away the competition, losing in the NLCS in 2017 and then failing to get past the Wild Card the two following years. Otherwise, they’ve missed out on the postseason altogether.
They don’t have players banging the door down to come play in Chicago, but Stroman has enjoyed it in North Chicago and expressed his desire openly to come back (subscription required) via a contract extension.
Stroman has a year left on his deal, but it’s a player option. Given his performance this year, it’s almost a sure thing he’ll opt out of the final year of his deal to cash in with a longer, lucrative deal in free agency this summer. But he was open to dealing with Chicago, letting it be known that he wants to stay and find an extension that works for both sides.
His latest Tweet put the negotiation details out in the open: Chicago does not feel the same way.
Marcus Stroman’s latest Tweet all but confirms he’ll be traded by Cubs
Stroman replied to a Tweet expressing praise over his performance this season saying, “My agent and I made multiple attempts to engage them on an extension. Club wasn’t interested in exploring it now. Will see how it plays out! Love everything about the @Cubs organization!”
Stroman’s final sentence indicating he still has love for the organization indicates one thing: This is his last card to play to force an extension in Chicago. Taking to Twitter forces the Cubs’ hand. Stroman was already on the trade block, but now he’s all the way out there. Teams know that Chicago hasn’t given Stroman what he wants and that’ll drive his trade price down (though everyone needs a pitcher like Stroman this year, so the Cubs can still cash in).
The ball is in Chicago’s court with the deadline coming up soon. Stroman has crushed it this year with the strongest ERA among starters. He’s been one of the few bright spots in an ultimately disappointing season.
Yet, the NL Central is still wide open for the taking for a team that can pull itself together.
He also, though, is the second-oldest starter, and Chicago’s concern is likely over whether this season from Stro will be looked back at as an outlier or an indicator of what was to come. They just signed Jameson Taillon, a year younger than Stroman, to a multi-year deal this winter that hasn’t panned out well yet. Making another bad call on an aging pitcher within the starting rotation could be detrimental to the team’s ability to build.
We’ll find out soon what fate holds for Stroman and the Cubs. Him pitching elsewhere just won’t feel right.