Chicago Cubs: A future chance at Harper or Machado

Chicago Cubs: Team might be in a better position in the future to sign Harper or Machado.

Theo Epstein recently clarified the position that Cubs have been in this offseason. He reiterated that Cubs fans should not be expecting a big, late free agent signing anywhere near the caliber of  Harper or Machado. Instead, he said that the Cubs, “have to be sort of creative and value-based.”

However, if Harper and Machado sign contracts similar to the ones Arrieta and Martinez signed late last offseason, then they may soon be free agents once again. Even teams such as the Rays might be considering the positive impact that a one year deal with Harper might have on their organization’s bottom line.

In a couple of years, Tyler Chatwood‘s contract will be off the books. Ben Zobrist only has one more year left on his contract. Veteran relief pitchers Brian Duensing and Brandon Kintzler maybe valuable contributors to this year’s bullpen or their salaries maybe dead money. Either way, they only have this season left on their current contracts.

Perhaps the Cubs will be able to sign some of their young players to contract extensions. In just the last few days Aaron Nola, Luis Severino, Max Kepler and Jorge Polanco have signed extensions with their teams. So there is a reason for increased hope that the Cubs might be able to extend some of their young players.