Chicago Cubs Rumors: Why going after Bryce Harper would be a bad move
Cash still reigns supreme
You see that picture above of starting pitcher Yu Darvish and outfielder Jason Heyward? Well, those two players represent more than one-third of a billion dollars in salary committed through 2024. The Cubs are paying them $21 million and $23 million per year respectively.
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Why is that important? Because the Cubs have some pretty significant players who will become free agents prior to that, which will require them to make some very difficult decisions. Javier Baez, Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, and Kyle Schwarber will all be free agents in 2022.
Now math, especially luxury tax math, was never my strength, but just from a common sense standpoint, it will be very difficult for the Cubs to afford all four of those players at the salaries they will likely command. In other words, they will have to make some very tough choices.
By taking on a player (and contract) like Bryce Harper, the Cubs could be looking at a contract in excess of $400 million in total value. For the Cubs, that would most certainly mean cutting ties with some players that have meant an awful lot to the organization.
It’s not as if they would simply be able to unload Heyward’s or Darvish’s contract. No team is going to take on those types of salaries, especially when the players are severely underperforming them. That’s why the Darvish injury meant more than just losing a top-notch starter. It also meant the Cubs’ margin for error when it comes to how they spend their money got infinitely smaller.
So the question is whether the cost of bringing Harper on board is worth it. But that cost includes not only what the Cubs will have to pay him, but who will have to depart as a result. To answer that question, they will have to look at his projected output over the life of the contract. Which brings me to the other reason signing Harper would be a bad idea for the Cubs.