Chicago Cubs: Will the window of contention close in 2021?

A changing of the guard?

At which point, the Cubs would have $120M on the books without Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Addison Russell and Kyle Schwarber. And that doesn’t even account for Kyle Hendricks and Jose Quintana hitting the market after the 2020 season.

Even without signing Harper, the Cubs are still in an uncomfortable position. Kris Bryant is going to earn $30-40M per year. Rizzo can probably expect $25-30M per year if he keeps producing at this level. Depending on their development, Russell, Baez and Schwarber could all come with a hefty price tag.

All of this to say, the Cubs need to make the most of the opportunity they have in-hand now. Not many teams can say that they have a roster filled with premier talent locked up for multiple years. The Cubs have put themselves in a great position to contend, but it won’t last forever.

Next: What Star Wars characters would the Cubs be?

It’ll be fun, if nothing else, to follow and see what kind of run the Cubs can make in the time that’s been given to them. From where I sit, the Cubs remain the team to beat in the National League until the day pretty much everyone leaves.