Samardzija's Trade Value Heats Up
By Rob Winn in News on Jun 18, 2014 7:30PM
Amid reports that the Cubs have reopened contract extension talks with ace pitcher Jeff Samardzija, there are rumors swirling about other teams interested in his services for a playoff run. While contract talks from the Cubs may be sincere—at least as sincere as the talks with the rooftop owners—an extension is highly unlikely considering that the organization is still taking a slow approach to bringing up their young prospects.
While the fan base clamors for a call up when they hear of another home run or 3-for-4 outing from Javier Baez or Kris Bryant (who was promoted to Triple-A today), the Cubs front office has refused to budge from their stance that each player needs to play an extended time at each level. This is largely because they don't want to start the clock on a young player's major league contract. This stance loudly hints that the organization still thinks they are a few years away of competing and Samardzija will be on the downside of his career when they are finally ready to go for it.
Reports are out there that the Giants and Royals had high-level scouts at Samardzija's start Tuesday night in Miami. That goes along with reported interest from the Blue Jays, Braves and pretty much every other team mildly in contention.
There's no question that Samardzija is a big fish in the trade market this year. And while the Cubs might look to extend him at a club-friendly deal, it's highly unlikely considering he's looking to cash in on one last big contract. When you combine that with the Cubs obviously resigned lose for at least for the next two years, general manager Theo Epstein and the brain trust will be trying to squeeze every last prospect out of Samardzija's value before the trade deadline.