Carlos Pena just signed with the Tampa Bay Rays for one year and $7.25 million, according to multiple reports.
This is of note to the Cubs for three reasons:
(1) He’s now officially a former Cub. I’ll always remember him fondly. He was a great teammate, a good bat, a great glove, and always had a brilliant quote ready.
(2) The Cubs now officially get a sandwich pick between the first and second round in the 2012 draft for him. Sweet.
(3) Had he not rejected the Cubs’ offer of arbitration (which formed the basis for the compensation the Cubs are now enjoying), the absolute lowest contract he could have received is $8 million, and it’s far more likely that he would have received $10 to $11 million. Either he did the Cubs a very nice, pre-arranged favor, or Scott Boras terribly misread the market.