Cubs rumors: Marcus Stroman’s future, Bellinger injury, and more

Cubs rumors: Marcus Stroman hopes to earn an extension with Chi

Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times is reporting that Marcus Stroman hopes to stay with the Cubs for essentially the remainder of his playing career.

As Lee explains, Stroman can opt out after this season, but would prefer to find an extension that works for both parties. Here’s what he said to Lee:

"“I’ve been open with the front office here, been very vocal that I want to be here and I want an extension, that I don’t want to honestly make it to free agency,” Stroman told the Sun-Times. “But I’m also very confident in my abilities in free agency. I’ve always bet on myself.”"

The Cubs have spent as of late, and do have some likely big-money extensions coming down the pipe as well. Justin Steele is a likely extension candidate, and plenty of fans believe he has earned it, though he is under team control the next few years through arbitration. They also just recently signed Ian Happ to an extension earlier this season.

An extension for Stroman could make sense. Though he’s far closer to his career twilight than his debut, he’s performed admirably this year and has been arguably one of the league’s strongest starters, despite looking a bit uncharacteristic for the role.

Stroman, after spending the first five and a half years of his career with the Toronto Blue Jays, has been onto the Mets and now the Cubs, and clearly would prefer some stability rather than continuing on as a journeyman.

Stro has been relatively stable, and it might be one of the necessary pieces for the Cubs as they look to remain competitive in a typically testy NL Central. Stroman has relished in the opportunity to play at Wrigley Field, enjoying the unique atmosphere and relationship with the fans at the Friendly Confines.