Chicago Cubs sign Yu Darvish to six-year deal, solidify rotation

The Chicago Cubs finally came up with the monster free agent signing everyone was asking for, signing star right-hander Yu Darvish.

There it is, Chicago Cubs fans: your big free agent signing of this offseason.

And, as many had started to speculate, the Cubs opted, in all likelihood to let fan favorite Jake Arrieta walk in favor of Yu Darvish.

The star right-handed pitcher just agreed to a six-year, $126 million deal with the North Siders, helping the Cubs rotation stay one of the top units in the National League (on paper at least).

Furthermore, the deal includes an opt-out clause, no-trade protections and contract escalators that could make the contract worth up to $150 million when it’s all said in done.

The Chicago Cubs nabbed their man.

Plus, they made the splash move many felt they had to make to stay competitive in the arms race (pun slightly intended) to claim the NL Central crown and ultimately return to the World Series.

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Speaking of which, Darvish’s rough World Series (0-2, 21.60 ERA in just 3.1 innings pitched) clearly didn’t scare the Chicago Cubs away from offering him big money, nor should it have.

For his career, Darvish is a far superior pitcher to what he showed in those final two postseason starts. Overall, he has posted 56-42 record with a 3.42 ERA with a 3.33 strikeout-to-walk ratio and a 1.179 WHIP.

From a numbers standpoint, he is actually very comparable to Arrieta, even having a slightly better ERA and SO/BB ratio. So, in theory, the Cubs shouldn’t be losing a whole lot overall, though Arrieta obviously won a CY Young here in 2015.

And if he can return to the form he showed in Texas prior to injured-plagued 2015 and 2016 seasons, he’ll fit in just fine alongside the likes of Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks and Jose Quintana.

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This was exactly the type of move the Chicago Cubs needed to make with the Milwaukee Brewers declaring their intention to steal the division following the additions of Christian Yelich and Lorenzo Cain. They couldn’t afford to stand pat and do nothing; they had to try to keep pace.

And if he can give the Cubs anything near what Arrieta did at a mere fraction of the reported $200 million contract Arrieta was pushing for heading into this offseason, I call that a steal.

We’ll see how it turns out. In the meantime, get ready for the “Yuuuuu” chants at the Friendly Confines this summer.