Did you hear the news today? Jason Heyward will NOT be returning to the Chicago Cubs for the final year of his massive contract. #22 will still get paid $22 million dollars next year, as he tries to catch on with another club for most likely the minimum. It’s a good gamble to take for whoever that other team will be; you are getting a 5x Gold Glove winner. For the Cubs, it’s been a long time coming…
Did Jason Heyward live up to his contract with the Cubs? Although the obvious answer is no, let me ask it another way. How much would you have been willing to pay for a speech during a rain delay after the 9th inning in Game 7 of the World Series that helped propel the Cubs to win their first World Series in 108 years in the next inning? Remember those commercials that talked about “priceless”… yeah, kind of like that. Another way to look at it: you can’t get mad at JHey for that stupid ass contract the Cubs gave him; it’s not his fault. What was he supposed to say? Uh, how about you guys pay me half of that? You can get mad at some of the same people we’re mad at today: the guys that gave him that contract. But don’t be fooled; it wasn’t this ridiculous contract that lead the Cubs down this ridiculous path. It’s easy for us to think that; they want us to think that. It’s just an excuse that the guys at the top don’t mind hiding behind. Remember, the Cubs have a lot more than $22 million dollars to spend on an annual basis.
The whole thing is frustrating. As we have seen each of the stars of that 2016 year get shipped out the door, one of the guys that continued to stick around, is the one that none of us wanted. I would have even preferred Dexter Fowler to stick around way back then. I had hope that JHey would finally start hitting, something other than those groundballs to 2nd. I’m sure they keep track of things like that right? They keep track of everything. He has to be among the league leaders in that category. There were other moments… other than the speech. Wasn’t he the guy who scored on the Lester bunt that one game? I remember him hitting a big home run (or two) against the Brewers. I remember the walk-off Grand Slam he hit against the Phillies at Wrigley; that was magical. He seemed every bit the good teammate; he still played defense at a very high level. You wanted a guy like that to succeed, but if that’s all it took…
At this point, you would think I’d be happy; talking all that trash about Heyward the past 5+ years. On the flip side, maybe I should be sad, because another piece of that 2016 season will no longer be around; he did play a part in that World Series title… don’t get it twisted. Yet, the feeling that I really have right now, is one of indifference. Kind of like that famous quote: “the opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference”… true? not true? Who knows… I will not have any unkind words for 22 as he departs; I would like to say Thank You. Did the speech really cause the Cubs to come back out in that 10th inning and win that game? Would you like to go back in time and find out what would have happened if that didn’t happen? I’m good. I’m good with that one. No matter how frustrated and upset I am, there is no changing what happened in 2016; I will be forever grateful for everyone that was a part of that year. Thanks Jason for your contribution in checking off one of the biggest bucket list items of my life.
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