When the Chicago Cubs made the blockbuster trade for Kyle Tucker this past off-season, the expectation from the entire baseball world was that they would do everything in their power to extend Tucker. While that is still certainly the plan for the Cubs, his price may only be going up by the day.
After a sluggish spring that had some Cubs fans worried, Tucker has been sensational in the Cubs’ first nine games. So far, Tucker has slashed .324/.444/.784 for a 1.228 OPS. He has also accumulated .8 bWAR and has walked more than he’s struck out. He recently set a career high with four straight games with a homer.
The 3-time all-star and World Series champion has stated that he would be down for an in-season extension, but unless the Cubs back up the brinx truck, he may wait to test his market in free-agency.
The Cubs can’t afford to lose him
The Cubs have a large incentive to lock up Tucker long-term. On one hand, the package they paid to acquire him was a premium one. The Cubs dealt former all-star Isaac Parades, promising pitcher Hayden Wesneski, and one of their top prospects in Cam Smith. The cubs would not have paid that price if they believed this to be a one-year rental.
Additionally, Tucker represents the first true “superstar” the Cubs have had since the days of Bryant/Rizzo/Baez in their prime. Since the departure of the World Series core, the Cubs have lacked one of the game’s truly elite players in their lineup and the results have shown. They have not won a playoff game since 2017 and have not made the postseason in a full season since 2018. One more season without the playoffs would almost certainly spell the end of Jed Hoyers’s time as president of baseball operations.
He won’t be cheap
The incentive to extend Tucker is clear. The problem is the price tag. It’s impossible to fully know what Tuckers’ desired price is, but it’s fair to assume that $400 million is the floor. With some of the game’s best and brightest recently signing for upwards of $700 million, the price of mega extensions has gone up significantly in recent years.
Tucker will likely look to sign deals similar to those of Mookie Betts and Mike Trout. They were 27 and 28 at the time of their deals, which is the same age as Tucker is now. Trout signed for $426 million, and Betts signed for $365 million. While Tucker isn’t as good now as Trout was then, that deal was signed in 2019. Had Trout signed that deal this season, it would’ve almost certainly crossed the $500 million mark.
The Cubs are one of the few teams that can write a check big enough to keep a star like Tucker around long-term. No matter how much the Ricketts may push back, they make more money than just about any ownership group in MLB. The Cubs have no choice but to concede to Tucker and write him a blank check. And if they don’t, there will be a mutiny in the streets of Chicago.
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