The Jon Lester Signs w/ Cubs - 6 yrs/$155 Million

[Deeg]

Kap and Gordo's sources really need to get their leaks straight.

[gscool89]

I'd trust Kap over Gordon any day.

[Proven Veteran]

Is there any chance he goes for less than 135? I doubt it, so the cubs had better be offering at least that or they aren't trying.

[gscool89]

RT @thekapman: I stand 100% by my source @GDubCub you're wrong on this one buddy.

 

Ding ding ding

[Hairyducked Idiot]

Kaplan is so far up Theo's posterior he'd make friends with a hispanic person if Theo asked him to, and we all know how much he'd hate that.

 

But I'm reverse course and do the opposite of anything Wittenmeyer reported.

[jersey cubs fan]

Kap and Gordo's sources really need to get their leaks straight.

the term "not accurate" is loose enough to account for a lot of stuff.

[Rob]

Kaplan is a despicable racist and one of the biggest tools in the universe.

 

That said, I trust his sources over Gordo's.

[minnesotacubsfan]

David Kaplan ‏@thekapman 10m10 minutes ago

Latest on Lester: Solid east coast non-team source told me Cubs being very aggressive (135+). Team has been in radio silence... Won't talk.

 

SPEND YOU NOOBS SPEND LIKE THE [expletive] SUN IS ABOUT TO EXPLODE

[Bryants Disco Ball]

Would it be possible to get two guys like Liriano and McCarthy for about the same combined years and around the same money per season as we'd give Lester? If so, I'd rather do that. Or are those two going to combine to average far more than $25 million per?

[USSoccer]

Would it be possible to get two guys like Liriano and McCarthy for about the same combined years and around the same money per season as we'd give Lester? If so, I'd rather do that. Or are those two going to combine to average far more than $25 million per?

 

That's the kind of logic that led to letting go of Ramirez because adding 4 guys' WAR together could replace him.

[Bryants Disco Ball]

Would it be possible to get two guys like Liriano and McCarthy for about the same combined years and around the same money per season as we'd give Lester? If so, I'd rather do that. Or are those two going to combine to average far more than $25 million per?

 

That's the kind of logic that led to letting go of Ramirez because adding 4 guys' WAR together could replace him.

 

But with a five-man rotation, I think I'd rather have Arrieta, Liriano, McCarthy, Hendricks and No. 5 spot then Lester, Arrieta, Hendricks, Turner and Straily or other No. 5 spot. (Yes, I realize we should be able to get Lester AND one of them, but still).

 

That, and I'm just not interested in giving a non-Clayton Kershaw $25 million per for that many years. If there is a great offensive option at that price, sure, but I'd rather have two quality pitchers than one really good one for that cost and the years.

[jersey cubs fan]

That, and I'm just not interested in giving a non-Clayton Kershaw $25 million per for that many years.

\

 

As long as you aren't an owner or your compensation is not tied to the level of profit of the Cubs, you should not have such thoughts.

[Bryants Disco Ball]

That, and I'm just not interested in giving a non-Clayton Kershaw $25 million per for that many years.

\

 

As long as you aren't an owner or your compensation is not tied to the level of profit of the Cubs, you should not have such thoughts.

 

Well, the ticket prices will go up. OK, that's probably not possible.

 

But that, and the fact that even if it's not our money, we all know there is a limit to how much THEY are going to spend, so I guess I can rephrase it to say that I'd prefer they not be interested in paying that much money for a non-Clayton Kershaw and instead spend their money on two of the pitchers I mentioned, provided they don't plan to increase the amount of money they are willing to spend in the near future.

[Tryptamine]

Would it be possible to get two guys like Liriano and McCarthy for about the same combined years and around the same money per season as we'd give Lester? If so, I'd rather do that. Or are those two going to combine to average far more than $25 million per?

 

That's the kind of logic that led to letting go of Ramirez because adding 4 guys' WAR together could replace him.

 

But with a five-man rotation, I think I'd rather have Arrieta, Liriano, McCarthy, Hendricks and No. 5 spot then Lester, Arrieta, Hendricks, Turner and Straily or other No. 5 spot. (Yes, I realize we should be able to get Lester AND one of them, but still).

 

That, and I'm just not interested in giving a non-Clayton Kershaw $25 million per for that many years. If there is a great offensive option at that price, sure, but I'd rather have two quality pitchers than one really good one for that cost and the years.

 

So you're not interested in ever signing a TOR pitcher. Fair enough I guess. Even Samardzija types are going to be getting that kind of money.

[Bryants Disco Ball]

Would it be possible to get two guys like Liriano and McCarthy for about the same combined years and around the same money per season as we'd give Lester? If so, I'd rather do that. Or are those two going to combine to average far more than $25 million per?

 

That's the kind of logic that led to letting go of Ramirez because adding 4 guys' WAR together could replace him.

 

But with a five-man rotation, I think I'd rather have Arrieta, Liriano, McCarthy, Hendricks and No. 5 spot then Lester, Arrieta, Hendricks, Turner and Straily or other No. 5 spot. (Yes, I realize we should be able to get Lester AND one of them, but still).

 

That, and I'm just not interested in giving a non-Clayton Kershaw $25 million per for that many years. If there is a great offensive option at that price, sure, but I'd rather have two quality pitchers than one really good one for that cost and the years.

 

So you're not interested in ever signing a TOR pitcher. Fair enough I guess. Even Samardzija types are going to be getting that kind of money.

 

I think that's fair to say. I would want Clayton Kershaw for that much at his age. But for the most part, just not interested in giving one pitcher that much money and that many years. Because whether we like it or not, that $25 million per season during those seven or eight years will prevent us from doing a lot of other things. I'm just not sure Lester is the guy to go all in on like that.

[jersey cubs fan]

Would it be possible to get two guys like Liriano and McCarthy for about the same combined years and around the same money per season as we'd give Lester? If so, I'd rather do that. Or are those two going to combine to average far more than $25 million per?

 

That's the kind of logic that led to letting go of Ramirez because adding 4 guys' WAR together could replace him.

 

But with a five-man rotation, I think I'd rather have Arrieta, Liriano, McCarthy, Hendricks and No. 5 spot then Lester, Arrieta, Hendricks, Turner and Straily or other No. 5 spot. (Yes, I realize we should be able to get Lester AND one of them, but still).

 

That, and I'm just not interested in giving a non-Clayton Kershaw $25 million per for that many years. If there is a great offensive option at that price, sure, but I'd rather have two quality pitchers than one really good one for that cost and the years.

 

So you're not interested in ever signing a TOR pitcher. Fair enough I guess. Even Samardzija types are going to be getting that kind of money.

 

I think that's fair to say. I would want Clayton Kershaw for that much at his age. But for the most part, just not interested in giving one pitcher that much money and that many years. Because whether we like it or not, that $25 million per season during those seven or eight years will prevent us from doing a lot of other things. I'm just not sure Lester is the guy to go all in on like that.

 

They have nothing else to spend it on. You are purposefully tying one hand behind your back as a team if you refuse to play with the big boys.

[Rob]

Would it be possible to get two guys like Liriano and McCarthy for about the same combined years and around the same money per season as we'd give Lester? If so, I'd rather do that. Or are those two going to combine to average far more than $25 million per?

 

That's the kind of logic that led to letting go of Ramirez because adding 4 guys' WAR together could replace him.

 

But with a five-man rotation, I think I'd rather have Arrieta, Liriano, McCarthy, Hendricks and No. 5 spot then Lester, Arrieta, Hendricks, Turner and Straily or other No. 5 spot. (Yes, I realize we should be able to get Lester AND one of them, but still).

 

That, and I'm just not interested in giving a non-Clayton Kershaw $25 million per for that many years. If there is a great offensive option at that price, sure, but I'd rather have two quality pitchers than one really good one for that cost and the years.

 

So you're not interested in ever signing a TOR pitcher. Fair enough I guess. Even Samardzija types are going to be getting that kind of money.

 

I think that's fair to say. I would want Clayton Kershaw for that much at his age. But for the most part, just not interested in giving one pitcher that much money and that many years. Because whether we like it or not, that $25 million per season during those seven or eight years will prevent us from doing a lot of other things. I'm just not sure Lester is the guy to go all in on like that.

 

Average cost of a win is now in the $7M range. So for $25M a year, you'd be looking for an average of about 3.5 fWAR per year. That's basically what guys like Kazmir, Kuroda, and Buehrle did last year. It doesn't take much anymore to justify it... just stay healthy and be 10% better than league average. (Obviously, significantly better pitchers don't need to stay quite so healthy to justify it.)

 

I know it seems like a stupid amount of money (and it is), but these sorts of deals are perfectly reasonable in the current landscape.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

It's hard for us to remember because our owner is filling out surveys on Amazon Mechanical Turk at 25 cents a pop in his spare time, but most teams in MLB are having money shoveled at them in giant piles right now between cable deals and revenue sharing. Prices that seemed crazy a couple of years ago are perfectly reasonable now.

[Felix Leiter]

Kaplan is a moron. He just throws dog sh*t against the wall knowing it's all made up. He drove WGN-FM 'The Game' off the air. He does not have the 'secret man-crush access' to Theo/Jed like he did with Hendry. Who are these secret, unnamed insiders? The janitor? A clubhouse boy? Laura Ricketts? He also told us that Melo was signing with the Bulls. Theo/Jed keep things close to the vest, especially when it comes to FA negotiations. Why would they leak something that potentially cost them more $$$? They don't.

 

The Lester thing will go another week or two. A decision might hinge on a potential trade for SP by the Cubs.

[jersey cubs fan]

Kaplan is a moron. He just throws dog sh*t against the wall knowing it's all made up. He drove WGN-FM 'The Game' off the air. He does not have the 'secret man-crush access' to Theo/Jed like he did with Hendry. Who are these secret, unnamed insiders? The janitor? A clubhouse boy? Laura Ricketts? He also told us that Melo was signing with the Bulls. Theo/Jed keep things close to the vest, especially when it comes to FA negotiations. Why would they leak something that potentially cost them more $$$? They don't.

 

The Lester thing will go another week or two. A decision might hinge on a potential trade for SP by the Cubs.

 

Kaplan is a Kenney boy.

[Guest]

Kaplan is a moron. He just throws dog sh*t against the wall knowing it's all made up. He drove WGN-FM 'The Game' off the air. He does not have the 'secret man-crush access' to Theo/Jed like he did with Hendry. Who are these secret, unnamed insiders? The janitor? A clubhouse boy? Laura Ricketts? He also told us that Melo was signing with the Bulls. Theo/Jed keep things close to the vest, especially when it comes to FA negotiations. Why would they leak something that potentially cost them more $$$? They don't.

 

The Lester thing will go another week or two. A decision might hinge on a potential trade for SP by the Cubs.

 

Like goony said, Kaplan's boy is Kenney (although he's claiming a source outside the organization on this one).

 

Also, your boy Levine who you start threads about is reporting a very similar thing, so...

[Felix Leiter]

Kaplan is a moron. He just throws dog sh*t against the wall knowing it's all made up. He drove WGN-FM 'The Game' off the air. He does not have the 'secret man-crush access' to Theo/Jed like he did with Hendry. Who are these secret, unnamed insiders? The janitor? A clubhouse boy? Laura Ricketts? He also told us that Melo was signing with the Bulls. Theo/Jed keep things close to the vest, especially when it comes to FA negotiations. Why would they leak something that potentially cost them more $$$? They don't.

 

The Lester thing will go another week or two. A decision might hinge on a potential trade for SP by the Cubs.

 

Like goony said, Kaplan's boy is Kenney (although he's claiming a source outside the organization on this one).

 

Also, your boy Levine who you start threads about is reporting a very similar thing, so...

 

Why would Theo/Jed confide in Kenney anything about FA talks? He's a bean counter. And if Kenney is leaking this stuff out, he should be fired.

 

Bruce Levine often provides sources for his stories. Kaplan gets his stories off of Twitter.

[Guest]

Kaplan is a moron. He just throws dog sh*t against the wall knowing it's all made up. He drove WGN-FM 'The Game' off the air. He does not have the 'secret man-crush access' to Theo/Jed like he did with Hendry. Who are these secret, unnamed insiders? The janitor? A clubhouse boy? Laura Ricketts? He also told us that Melo was signing with the Bulls. Theo/Jed keep things close to the vest, especially when it comes to FA negotiations. Why would they leak something that potentially cost them more $$$? They don't.

 

The Lester thing will go another week or two. A decision might hinge on a potential trade for SP by the Cubs.

 

Like goony said, Kaplan's boy is Kenney (although he's claiming a source outside the organization on this one).

 

Also, your boy Levine who you start threads about is reporting a very similar thing, so...

 

Why would Theo/Jed confide in Kenney anything about FA talks? He's a bean counter. And if Kenney is leaking this stuff out, he should be fired.

 

Bruce Levine often provides sources for his stories. Kaplan gets his stories off of Twitter.

 

Provides sources? What does that mean? Kaplan was the first to report anything substantive on the Cubs and their offer to Lester yesterday...that was then followed by a flood of other reports on the Cubs/Lester situation from local reporters, including Levine. So who exactly is getting stories off Twitter?

 

When they report rumors, they are always from unnamed sources. You're not getting a direct quote from Jed Hoyer or something with anything substantive.

 

You're kidding yourself if you don't think Kaplan has plenty of access to this organization. He's practically their mouthpiece.

[Felix Leiter]

Kaplan is a moron. He just throws dog sh*t against the wall knowing it's all made up. He drove WGN-FM 'The Game' off the air. He does not have the 'secret man-crush access' to Theo/Jed like he did with Hendry. Who are these secret, unnamed insiders? The janitor? A clubhouse boy? Laura Ricketts? He also told us that Melo was signing with the Bulls. Theo/Jed keep things close to the vest, especially when it comes to FA negotiations. Why would they leak something that potentially cost them more $$$? They don't.

 

The Lester thing will go another week or two. A decision might hinge on a potential trade for SP by the Cubs.

 

Like goony said, Kaplan's boy is Kenney (although he's claiming a source outside the organization on this one).

 

Also, your boy Levine who you start threads about is reporting a very similar thing, so...

 

Why would Theo/Jed confide in Kenney anything about FA talks? He's a bean counter. And if Kenney is leaking this stuff out, he should be fired.

 

Bruce Levine often provides sources for his stories. Kaplan gets his stories off of Twitter.

 

Provides sources? What does that mean? Kaplan was the first to report anything substantive on the Cubs and their offer to Lester yesterday...that was then followed by a flood of other reports on the Cubs/Lester situation from local reporters, including Levine. So who exactly is getting stories off Twitter?

 

When they report rumors, they are always from unnamed sources. You're not getting a direct quote from Jed Hoyer or something with anything substantive.

 

You're kidding yourself if you don't think Kaplan has plenty of access to this organization. He's practically their mouthpiece.

 

You're wrong, David. Kaplan has NEVER broken a story by himself. He makes up a lot of rumors and things he wants to happen, simply to get people to listen to him. How many Cubs stories he has claimed to have intimate knowledge on have turned out to be non-stories? But Kaplan has moved on to the next load of b.s.. He's not a journalist. He's not a beat writer. He's rarely in the clubhouse. He doesn't travel with the team. But we're supposed to believe everything he says over people whose jobs are to cover the Cubs. You don't see Len Kasper doing that kind of nonsense. Isn't Len more wired in than Kaplan?

 

Theo/Jed don't leak, unlike Hendry. They're professionals.

[Guest]

You literally just described Bruce Levine to the letter.