Chicago Cubs president Theo Epstein has led the team to their first postseason appearance since 2008 after a wildly successful campaign with one of the youngest rosters in the MLB. Epstein's work over the past four years has him in line for a lucrative contract extension.
Epstein's deal doesn't expire until after the 2016 season, but rumors have surfaced regarding the front office veteran's future with the Cubs. It's likely Chicago wants to avoid having Epstein hit the open market and field enormous offers from other MLB teams, so it appears the club will look to lock him up long-term.
"Like Epstein two weeks earlier, Ricketts expressed a desire to extend Epstein's contract beyond the five-year term that expires next year but said those talks will wait until after the season," writes Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times.
"Theo and I have a great relationship. Obviously, the results are great," Ricketts told Wittenmyer. "Everyone in the baseball organization, we're on a mission. And we want to keep that mission going forward."
"We'll sit down and talk about it at some point about it with him," Ricketts added, via Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune. "Right now really we're just focusing on the postseason. Theo and I have a great relationship. Obviously the results are great and I think not just Theo, but everyone in the baseball organization, we're on a mission."
Sullivan notes the last time the Cubs went to the playoffs in 2008, then-general manager Jim Hendry received a four-year extension. The only difference here is that Epstein is expected to become one of the highest - if not the highest - paid front office executives in the MLB, based on rumors and previous contracts handed out to other notable execs.
Los Angeles Dodgers president Andrew Friedman received a five-year, $35 million deal in the offseason and that will likely be the starting point for Epstein and the Cubs.
"Ricketts is not in a good bargaining position, so he is going to have to hope Epstein's demands aren't insane," Sullivan added. "Ricketts can't let Epstein go through the 2016 season unsigned, a scenario that would create a huge distraction."
The Cubs plan to have another active offseason where they chase another top starting pitcher, whether that be David Price, Zack Greinke, Johnny Cueto, Jordan Zimmermann or someone else. They also need to fill some voids that may be left in the outfield once Dexter Fowler and Austin Jackson hit free agency.
Then man who will be taking care of all of that is Epstein, but to ensure that process goes swimmingly, Ricketts will need to be Epstein for a day and settle this soon-to-be contract extension issue.
After all, this Cubs team could be the one that breaks the franchise's painful 106-year World Series drought.
