The Chicago Cubs are making moves and now that they are hiring Joe Maddon as manager, the team could be ready to spend big in free agency and Jon Lester could be a main target for Theo Epstein after their years in Boston and this comes as the Cubbies have a number of top young players ready to breakout and lead, with All-Star Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Addison Russell and Javier Baez all looking like strong players for the team.
According to ESPN.com, the Cubs are set to hire Maddon as their manager and it comes after he opted out of his contract with the Tampa Bay Rays. Maddon was allowed to opt out after his contract had a trigger set by Andrew Friedman leaving. Reports had the Rays and Maddon unable to agree on a new extension, as he took a hometown discount last time and now was looking for his real value. The Cubs have opted to pony up the cash and it comes at a perfect time, as the team is expected to improve greatly over the next few years with a number of young players set to hit the majors.
The Rays were in a similar situation when Maddon took over the team and he ended up bringing them from the cellar to the World Series. Maddon comes in after bringing the Rays to the playoffs four times in his run with the team and he had a 754-705 record over nine seasons. The team won the division twice and made it to the World Series and now Maddon takes over a team that has not been to the playoffs since 2008.
Some reports have the Cubs chasing Lester this year, as they have money to spend and now a fan base that is excited about young players and a new manager. Lester is going to command a ton of money and it comes after he was traded from the Red Sox to the Athletics this past season. Last year he went 16-11 on the year with a 2.46 ERA and 22 strikeouts and now he should get the biggest deal among the pitchers on the market. Lester will be 31 in January and he is still in his prime and is one of the best playoff pitchers in history.
