12/20 Jackson & Villanueva updates
According to reports Thursday, the Cubs have agreed with Edwin Jackson on a four-year, $52 million deal. He was 10-11 last season and compiled a 4.03 ERA in 31 starts. The Cubs and Carlos Villanueva also have reportedly agreed to a two-year, $10 million contract. Villanueva, 29, made 16 starts and 22 relief appearances last season for the Blue Jays, compiling a 4.16 ERA over 125 1/3 innings. He could be used as a swingman.
The Cubs would not confirm or comment on the reports but Matt Garza did. Garza was Jackson’s teammate in Tampa in 2008. He wondered out loud on his Twitter account what uniform number the right-hander would wear with the Cubs. Garza then welcomed Jackson on Twitter: “Like I said last night, EJax is my boy! I heard it from a cubs horse last night!! That horse being EJax! Nice to have another in the stable!”
– Carrie Muskat
mlblogsmuskat1
This is good, I like to see the Cubs spending money on some young pitchers that can eat up innings and have a good upside. I hope they keep stockpiling and in a year or two sign a NUMBER ONE ACE pitcher to lead the rotation. To date there is no ACE on this staff and all these pitchers being signed are just middle to back of the order guys, but still neccessary to have.
Pingback: Reports: Cubs Sign Carlos Villanueva for Two Years and $10 Million | Bleacher Nation | Chicago Cubs News, Rumors, and Commentary
Jackson has not been with any team for four years. A trade chip making $13 million a year is not highly desireable either. We need another quality starter and some offense. If there is a shortage of quality talent to the point that a number 4-5 starter can command 52 mill. all of baseball is in for it.
Usually when a player is with several teams over few years, it’s a red flag. But Jackson was a Scott Boras client until July, and then dropped him. I don’t know the reason but you have to wonder if that’s why he couldn’t get a long-term deal before. What I’m saying is the problem may not have been Jackson
Life is good. Cubs make a couple real sensible deals and Fed-ex just delivered 4 pizzas from Gino East to me in Arizona. Its a Chicago night for me. Go Cubs.
FANTASTIC!!! (the pizza of course, the players…like you said SENIBLE…)
Totally o.k. with pitching staff. If surgeons and rehab trainers had it down we could be super good this summer. Now offense probably means holding on to Sorry til we fall way back and if he starts out with a spring like last year-oh my. Free agents out there are not reliable and we really do not have much trade value on this team. Give Jed credit for not putting 2,000 dollar wheels on a Ford Escort that is belching smoke.
If all these pitchers are healthy, the staff has to be better than it was last year!