LACKPOCALYPSE NOW

[Slaky]

Oh man.

[Eli]

We need a firebarn, now more than ever.

[Tinker to Evers to Chance]

I'm glad I have someone to hate on this team now.

[Bort]

This is what I get for saying "anyone but Snork."

[InternetApex]

This is what I get for saying "anyone but Snork."

Still rather have him than Snork given what Snork is asking. Now let's see them not sign Snork, not trade Soler, move Castro to center and call it an offseason.

[Saul Goodman]

This is what I get for saying "anyone but Snork."

Still rather have him than Snork given what Snork is asking. Now let's see them not sign Snork, not trade Soler, move Castro to center and call it an offseason.

You take this back, right now.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

Can we firebarn a thread?

[CBStew]

I found this description of the 2016 Cubs on the interweb today: 

"It's hard to call a team that hasn't won the World Series in 107 seasons the league's next dynasty, but it looks like that's where they're headed. They have the most young hitting talent in baseball and even as most of them were rookies, they won 97 games last season. As they mature, they will get better. Since those youngsters aren't getting paid very much, they can afford to sign great pitching, including extending Jake Arrieta's contract. That sets them up to be among several World Series favorites for at least the next five years."

[Canadouche]

After what Greinke and Price received, I don't think any team short of the Imperials can afford Arrieta, and even they would have to put off the construction of the Death Star for a few years in order to swing his likely demands. Obviously the Cubs can't truly consider extending him until after this season, and if he has a year even approaching what he did last year, then contract negotiations are going to be painful to follow.

[Eli]

After what Greinke and Price received, I don't think any team short of the Imperials can afford Arrieta, and even they would have to put off the construction of the Death Star for a few years in order to swing his likely demands. Obviously the Cubs can't truly consider extending him until after this season, and if he has a year even approaching what he did last year, then contract negotiations are going to be painful to follow.

This isn't really a rare opinion anymore, but I don't think they should even think about an extension. They have him through his age-31 season for a relatively cheap cost. There's almost no upside in giving him a huge contract extension this year.

[Quality Start Machine]

After what Greinke and Price received, I don't think any team short of the Imperials can afford Arrieta, and even they would have to put off the construction of the Death Star for a few years in order to swing his likely demands. Obviously the Cubs can't truly consider extending him until after this season, and if he has a year even approaching what he did last year, then contract negotiations are going to be painful to follow.

This isn't really a rare opinion anymore, but I don't think they should even think about an extension. They have him through his age-31 season for a relatively cheap cost. There's almost no upside in giving him a huge contract extension this year.

You can give him 5 years now at a rate that will be below market value compared to his walk year. And 5 years now means you can give him his gold watch and watch him ride into the sunset elsewhere.

[SKO]

After what Greinke and Price received, I don't think any team short of the Imperials can afford Arrieta, and even they would have to put off the construction of the Death Star for a few years in order to swing his likely demands. Obviously the Cubs can't truly consider extending him until after this season, and if he has a year even approaching what he did last year, then contract negotiations are going to be painful to follow.

This isn't really a rare opinion anymore, but I don't think they should even think about an extension. They have him through his age-31 season for a relatively cheap cost. There's almost no upside in giving him a huge contract extension this year.

You can give him 5 years now at a rate that will be below market value compared to his walk year. And 5 years now means you can give him his gold watch and watch him ride into the sunset elsewhere.

5 years now means you're guaranteeing to pay a guy until he's 37 years old when he's managed exactly one 200 IP season in his career. No thanks.

Also he's a Boras client, so the odds of him agreeing to a below market anything are slim

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

After what Greinke and Price received, I don't think any team short of the Imperials can afford Arrieta, and even they would have to put off the construction of the Death Star for a few years in order to swing his likely demands. Obviously the Cubs can't truly consider extending him until after this season, and if he has a year even approaching what he did last year, then contract negotiations are going to be painful to follow.

This isn't really a rare opinion anymore, but I don't think they should even think about an extension. They have him through his age-31 season for a relatively cheap cost. There's almost no upside in giving him a huge contract extension this year.

You can give him 5 years now at a rate that will be below market value compared to his walk year. And 5 years now means you can give him his gold watch and watch him ride into the sunset elsewhere.

5 years now means you're guaranteeing to pay a guy until he's 37 years old when he's managed exactly one 200 IP season in his career. No thanks.

Also he's a Boras client, so the odds of him agreeing to a below market anything are slim

There should be zero conversation about Arrieta's long-time role with the Cubs until the final out of 2016. 

[Quality Start Machine]

After what Greinke and Price received, I don't think any team short of the Imperials can afford Arrieta, and even they would have to put off the construction of the Death Star for a few years in order to swing his likely demands. Obviously the Cubs can't truly consider extending him until after this season, and if he has a year even approaching what he did last year, then contract negotiations are going to be painful to follow.

This isn't really a rare opinion anymore, but I don't think they should even think about an extension. They have him through his age-31 season for a relatively cheap cost. There's almost no upside in giving him a huge contract extension this year.

You can give him 5 years now at a rate that will be below market value compared to his walk year. And 5 years now means you can give him his gold watch and watch him ride into the sunset elsewhere.

5 years now means you're guaranteeing to pay a guy until he's 37 years old when he's managed exactly one 200 IP season in his career. No thanks.

Also he's a Boras client, so the odds of him agreeing to a below market anything are slim

Yeah, but Arietta's a slightly different case that the average Boras client, in that he wouldn't hit the free agent market until he's probably older than any of the "premium" free agents in his class - this is assuming, of course, that he remains a God among men between here and there.

So teams might be a little more leery about backing up the Brinks truck then, so he might as well cash in now - and if he signs a Snork-sized deal now, he'd still make out over the course of 5 years.

[SKO]

After what Greinke and Price received, I don't think any team short of the Imperials can afford Arrieta, and even they would have to put off the construction of the Death Star for a few years in order to swing his likely demands. Obviously the Cubs can't truly consider extending him until after this season, and if he has a year even approaching what he did last year, then contract negotiations are going to be painful to follow.

This isn't really a rare opinion anymore, but I don't think they should even think about an extension. They have him through his age-31 season for a relatively cheap cost. There's almost no upside in giving him a huge contract extension this year.

You can give him 5 years now at a rate that will be below market value compared to his walk year. And 5 years now means you can give him his gold watch and watch him ride into the sunset elsewhere.

5 years now means you're guaranteeing to pay a guy until he's 37 years old when he's managed exactly one 200 IP season in his career. No thanks.

Also he's a Boras client, so the odds of him agreeing to a below market anything are slim

Yeah, but Arietta's a slightly different case that the average Boras client, in that he wouldn't hit the free agent market until he's probably older than any of the "premium" free agents in his class - this is assuming, of course, that he remains a God among men between here and there.

So teams might be a little more leery about backing up the Brinks truck then, so he might as well cash in now - and if he signs a Snork-sized deal now, he'd still make out over the course of 5 years.

He'd be the same age that Greinke is now and Greinke just got 206 million dollars. Stop.