January 11, 2019 • Cubs.com, Cubs, Hendricks reportedly avoid arbitration https://www.mlb.com/cubs/news/cubs-kyle-hendricks-avoid-arbitration/c-302604102 • NBC Sports Chicago, Report: Cubs want a shot at Bryce Harper, but ownership 'unlikely' to provide approval https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/cubs/report-cubs-want-bryce-harper-ownership-unlikely- provide-approval-mlb-free-agent-hot-stove-nationals • NBC Sports Chicago, Cubs mailbag: Money talk, a loaded NL Central and potential trades https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/cubs/cubs-mailbag-money-talk-loaded-nl-central-and- potential-trades-harper-bryant-epstein-rumors-hot-stove-mlb • NBC Sports Chicago, 'We would like to pay Addison Russell to go away': Cubs fans make a strong statement with fundraiser https://www.nbcsports.com/chicago/cubs/we-would-pay-addison-russell-go-away-cubs-fans-make- strong-statement-fundraiser-epstein • Chicago Tribune, Kyle Hendricks gets a raise: 1-year, $7.4 million deal with Cubs https://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-spt-cubs-kyle-hendricks-deal-20190111- story.html • Chicago Tribune, Cubs will start spring training on Feb. 12 in Arizona https://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseball/cubs/ct-spt-cubs-spring-training-schedule- 20190110-story.html • Daily Herald, Serious money business awaits Cubs in coming days https://www.dailyherald.com/sports/20190110/serious-money-business-awaits-cubs-in-coming- days -- Cubs.com Cubs, Hendricks reportedly avoid arbitration By Jordan Bastian The Cubs have established a strong reputation for avoiding arbitration, and that continued early Friday morning. According to MLB Network insider Jon Heyman, the Cubs avoided arbitration with right-hander Kyle Hendricks on a one-year contract worth $7.405 million. That was the first of seven dominos to fall leading up to Major League Baseball's noon CT deadline on Friday for exchanging proposed salary figures with any unsigned arbitration-eligible players. Javier Baez, Kris Bryant, Carl Edwards Jr., Mike Montgomery, Addison Russell and Kyle Schwarber are also arbitration-eligible this offseason. Under president of baseball operations Theo Epstein, who joined Chicago's front office prior to the 2012 season, the Cubs have gone to an arbitration hearing only once, when the team prevailed last winter in Justin Grimm's case. Hendricks' reported salary -- in his second year of arbitration -- is a raise from the $4.175 million he earned last season with the Cubs. In parts of five seasons with the Cubs, the 29-year-old Hendricks has gone 52-33 with a 3.07 ERA in 133 games, finishing third for the National League Cy Young Award in 2016. The right-hander went 14-11 with a 3.44 ERA in a team-leading 199 innings during 2018. -- NBC Sports Chicago Report: Cubs want a shot at Bryce Harper, but ownership 'unlikely' to provide approval By Tony Andracki Mid-January is approaching, the Cubs just announced their spring training report date (Feb. 13) and yet Bryce Harper remains without a team for 2019 or beyond. The market for Harper will make your head spin, as any interested teams have public holdups and front office executives around the game are spending a lot more time shooting down rumors than stoking the flames. His former team, the Washington Nationals, were once considered to be out of the Harper Sweepstakes, but now appear to be back in the mix. Meanwhile, the Nats have continued to make the rest of their roster better, including the signing of free agent second baseman Brian Dozier Thursday. In talking about where the Nationals' financials stand after the Dozier deal and whether they can even afford Harper, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal mentioned the other teams in the mix for the superstar and wrote: The Cubs would love a shot at Harper, though ownership approval continues to appear unlikely, sources say. Now, this is essentially a non-update update. We know Theo Epstein's front office has had their eyes set on Harper for a while, they clearly appreciate his skillset and he would be an immediate fit on a team that could absolutely use an offensive upgrade. But Epstein has been touting the Cubs' budget issues since the first week of November, pointing to how much money the Cubs already have committed to the 2019 roster. Barring a crazy turn of events, the Cubs are projected to fly by the $206 million luxury tax threshold this season. The key word in Rosenthal's sentence is "continues" as it represents no deviation from the status quo that the Ricketts family does not want to push the payroll to astronomical proportions in 2019. Maybe all the talk of the budget is just posturing by Epstein and Co. to keep their cards close to their chest, but if so, they're doing a damn good job of selling it. To date, the only addition the Cubs have made to their big-league roster this winter is a $5 million deal for Daniel Descalso, and only $1.5 million of that is owed in 2019. (They also picked up the $20 million option for Cole Hamels, but traded away Drew Smyly and his $7 million salary to create room for Hamels.) The Cubs' 2019 Opening Day luxury tax payroll is projected at north of $228 million (Roster Resource); the previous record for Opening Day payroll in franchise history was $182 million set last season. -- NBC Sports Chicago Cubs mailbag: Money talk, a loaded NL Central and potential trades By Tony Andracki Welcome to the first Cubs mailbag of 2019. We tackle a plethora of issues Cubs fans are curious about at the moment including Bryce Harper (of course), Kris Bryant, potential trades, a loaded National League Central, the team's money woes and how Theo Epstein and Co. can avoid another late-season bullpen let down this year: Will we have an answer by the time the Cubs convention starts next week on where Bryce Harper will be playing next year? — Rob Bartel (@RobBartel) Good question and I'm going to say "no." I truly have no idea when the Harper or Machado sweepstakes will end, but I believe Harper will wait until Machado signs so he and Scott Boras can ensure he will get the larger contract. Based on the way this winter and last winter have gone, I'm going to say we are still wondering where Harper will sign by Feb. 1, which would've seemed unfathomable just a few months ago. what are they trying to improve as rest of the NL Central appears to be loading up? — Epic Arizona (@epicarizona) The Cubs have maintained all winter they are very focused on improving the players they have on the roster and insist most of the answers are internal. It's totally understandable that fans are having a hard time swallowing that as a rationale after the way the 2018 team was eliminated in a brutal final couple days of the season. Epstein maintains his front office does not have much wiggle room in the budget, so the only real option has been trying to get creative (like the Daniel Descalso deal and Drew Smyly trade to clear room for Cole Hamels) while also focusing on making their current roster the best it could possibly be. You're right in that the rest of the division is loading up, as the Cardinals have had a great offseason, the Reds are markedly better than they were a year ago, the Pirates will have a full season of Chris Archer and the Brewers just woke up from a winter hibernation by signing the best catcher on the market. It's been a tough offseason for Cubs fans to stomach, no doubt. Is it more likely the Cubs anticipate bounce back seasons by some fringe guys (Schwarber/Happ for example) and instead of signing FAs will look to make a splash in July moving some pieces? — Me. (@bigjuice9) This coincides with the earlier question and it's a great point. Part of why the Cubs are not spending right now is because they always leave $5-$10 million for in-season moves to improve the team in July after the war of attrition either weakens the roster or shines a spotlight on the holes Epstein and Co. need to fill. Remember, this is still a team that won 95 games last year despite some disastrous pitching results (namely in the rotation early on), tough injury luck and down seasons from a host of core guys (Bryant, Contreras, etc.). Even if the Cubs don't add another player to their roster between now and Opening Day, they should still contend for the division and can always add reinforcements in-season. Cubs are treading water. Not really a concern. Just an observation. — Mark Gunderson (@Gunny_83) I have no argument otherwise at this moment. Their current roster is almost exactly the same as it was to end 2018, which certainly backs the "treading water" assessment. We've seen our rivals compete fiercely with a smaller budget. Can the Cubs do the same? Can the Cubs get the best out of the players we sign without overpaying for performance? — Paul (@mrpchvz) Well first off, the Cubs have anything but a "small" budget. I get fans want them to spend more and there is a sense of urgency to win another championship in this competitive window. But the Cubs are on pace to spend nearly $40 million more on payroll in 2019 than they have in any other season in franchise history. They will rank among the top payrolls in the game once again (for a fifth straight season) and it's possible they may have the highest payroll in baseball.