Outbid by the A’s! It’s all over, people! Get to your fallout shelters!
I kid, of course, but that’ll be the takeaway from folks who were already deeply concerned and/or dubious about the Cubs’ ability to spend to support a team that otherwise looks like it could be very competitive in a loaded division in 2019. A reported Cubs relief target, Joakim Soria, is off to the A’s:
#Athletics close to finalizing two-year deal with free-agent reliever Joakim Soria, sources tell The Athletic. Some details to complete, and Soria must pass physical.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 21, 2018
Sources: The value of Soria’s contract is expected to be in the $15 million to 15.5 million range. https://t.co/MlLcvyDFk9
— Jesse Sanchez (@JesseSanchezMLB) December 21, 2018
Soria seems a good bet to be a very effective reliever over the next couple years, so $7.5 million or so per year is not a substantial investment. The relief market remains loaded, even after Soria and Andrew Miller (to the Cardinals) have signed, so it’s not as if the Cubs can’t still find very useful relievers.
But … you know … they’ve gotta do it at some point.