MLB: Why did it make sense to sign starter Marcus Stroman for the Cubs?

After several winters in which free agency was largely absent, and this season’s sell-off of the core that helped end the Los Angeles World Series drought Chicago Cubs, the right pitcher’s team signature Marcus stroman to a three-year, $ 71 million deal was a welcome move for many.

This is a big market team, after all, and the team president, Jed Hoyer, is not satisfied with the lordship of another long and treacherous reconstruction:

But Hoyer had also made it clear that this was not an offseason in which the Cubs would establish the market in free agency. They aren’t putting the finishing touches on a team that could enter 2022 as a World Series contender.

So is Stroman’s signing an indication that the Cubs’ offseason priorities and plans have changed?

If he’s around for the three-year contract, Stroman will launch his 31-, 32- and 33-year seasons with the Cubs. So it might seem logical to surround him with a lot more talent.

Why waste those years of one of the best free agents on the market? But don’t expect a major change in direction. This move, according to Hoyer, fits his original plans:

It may interest you: MLB The numbers that endorse Marcus Stroman as an Elite starter

It’s always been about building a squad that can compete this year. Obviously there are challenges with that. We have several gaps to fill and we have lost several players. But I still feel like through free agency we had some flexibility and if we could be crafty, we certainly can. We never doubt that. We still want to build the agricultural system and try to build that group almost like we did in 2015.

Rafael Martinez

I am fond of the King of Sports, especially the Boston Red Sox in MLB and in general all of Mexican baseball. This profession has given me the opportunity to cover major events such as the Caribbean Series, the LMB All Star, LMP (uninterrupted since 2009), signings of important players. I had the chance to attend the 2013 World Classic in Arizona, USA, albeit as a fan. Apart from this beautiful sport, I love basketball, where I have also narrated games and even an NBA friendly 10 years ago, but I carry baseball in my veins. Graduated in Communication Sciences from the Autonomous University of Sinaloa (UAS) , from which I graduated in 2011. I was born in Mazatlán, Sinaloa and started in the world of sports journalism in 2004 in the newspaper El Sol de Mazatlán, where I was a baseball columnist and reporter at the same time. In January 2009 I came to El Debate as a journalist reporter and it was almost six years (in the first stage), until in November 2014 I emigrated to the radio providing my services in Línea Directa-Grupo RSN. My cycle there ended in July 2019 and within days, El Debate gave me another opportunity to work and opened the doors for me again. That is how I came to Al Bat, where I have been since 2019 as a web journalist.

see more