Chicago Cubs: Will Yu Darvish pursuit spur Brewers, Cardinals to action?

HOUSTON, TX – OCTOBER 27: Yu Darvish #21 of the Los Angeles Dodgers walks off the field as he exits the game during the second inning against the Houston Astros in game three of the 2017 World Series at Minute Maid Park on October 27, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

The Chicago Cubs have been linked to Yu Darvish for weeks. If that turns into a deal, will St. Louis or Milwaukee made impactful additions in response?

First of all, I’d like to take a paragraph to wish all of you happy holidays. I hope this is a time when you gather with your loved ones and reflect on the more important things in life besides baseball. Having said that, baseball is still very good, and being a Chicago Cubs fan is pretty nice right now.

The Cubs entered the offseason with starting pitching as a glaring need. Both Jake Arrieta and John Lackey came off Chicago’s books as they hit free agency. Finding a way to replace a Cy Young Award winner and a veteran innings-eater with a postseason pedigree isn’t exactly a walk in the park.

With 40 percent of the starting rotation up-for-grabs, the rumor mill churned endlessly to open the winter. Chicago was seemingly connected to every single available arm on the market. Some of those rumblings started long before the postseason even drew to a close.

The Chicago Cubs have been linked to Yu Darvish for weeks. If that turns into a deal, will St. Louis or Milwaukee made impactful additions in response?

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