Vigilante Sports

In a move to solidify their offense, the Chicago Cubs have reached an agreement with free agent Alfonso Soriano. WGN has said that the deal is an 8 year deal for 136 million. It’s the fifth richest contract in Major League Baseball history.

This signing comes on the heels of the Cubs resigning their third basemen Aramis Ramirez and Kerry Wood. It appears that the Cubs are willing to spend the money. Now the question is are they spending money on the right things?

I have long been a fan of Soriano. I think he’s the real deal. I remember the rumors when he was with the Yankees about him being on the trading block in a deal for Sammy Sosa. I would have been all for it then. The thing about this contract that worries me is the length. Eight years is a long long long time. Soriano is already 30 years old. I’m not sure he has 8 productive years left in him. That’s a bit troubling to me.
I wonder if this signing means there will not be any significant signings on the pitching staff, and that worries me. I know that the Cubs feel really confident in their young arms. I agree, we all saw flashes of brilliance last summer. But I would like to see another solid starter who can stay healthy in the front of the rotation with Carlos Zambrano. Prior and Wood might be good to go with another year of rehabilitation, but I wouldn’t count on it. If they’re able to add a solid starter as well, I’d feel really good about this signing. Not necessarily Schmidt or Zito, but someone substantial.
I definitely like the Cubs offense now that they’ve signed Soriano. I wonder if the Cubs inability to produce when Derrek Lee went down with an injury that encouraged this move. Makes sense. I just hope they’re not handcuffing themselves with this contract. But it’s definitely exciting. What do you think about the Cubs getting Soriano, and what will it mean for the rest of their roster?

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 19th, 2006 at 10:09 pm and is filed under Baseball, Chicago Cubs, MLB. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.