Fansided

3 Cubs stealing money from the team thanks to bad contracts

By Zachary Rotman

Sep 4, 2021; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks (28) leaves a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fifth inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 4, 2021; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks (28) leaves a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fifth inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Kyle Hendricks, Cubs
Chicago Cubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks. (Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports) /

The Chicago Cubs are in the upper half of the league in team payroll but have a good shot at finishing under .500. Who from the team is stealing money because of a bad contract?

Fans of any MLB team enjoy talking about how much money players on their favorite team make. There’re teams like the Braves who seem to get all of their star players to sign incredibly team-friendly deals that help set them up to be competitive for many years.

And then there are teams like the Chicago Cubs. The Cubs are in the upper half of the league in payroll but went 74-88 last season and could easily finish under .500 for a third consecutive season.

Chicago made some splashes including signing Dansby Swanson to a massive contract. Swanson was a good addition, but the Cubs are on the hook for some other pretty miserable contracts. Which players, because of bad contracts, are essentially stealing money from the Cubs?

3. Kyle Hendricks is not reliable anymore

Right before Opening Day in 2019, the Cubs extended Kyle Hendricks on a four-year $55.6 million dollar deal. Hendricks was as reliable as they come in terms of innings eaters as he had sub-4.00 ERA’s and at least 130 innings pitched in each of his four full MLB seasons.

The beginning of this deal looked promising as Hendricks posted a 3.46 ERA in 30 starts in 2019 and then a 2.88 ERA in 12 starts in the shortened 2020 season. Unfortunately, Hendricks had a rough 2021 despite making all 32 of his starts posting an ERA of 4.77 and then he was struggling again in 2022 before suffering a capsular tear in his right shoulder which ended his season prematurely.

Hendricks was done in early July and is unlikely to be ready for Opening Day this season. The veteran right-hander is set to make $14 million dollars this season, and the chances of him performing up to those standards are slim.

Hendricks is a Cubs legend as he was instrumental in breaking the curse, but in 2023 he’s not worth what he’s earning.

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