Cot's baseball contracts projects that the Cubs will trim their payroll obligations by approximately two-thirds for the 2015 season. Cot's figures show the Cubs 2015 payroll at $31.5 million. It also projects the 2017 payroll (where many fans think the Cubs turnaround begins in earnest) at a shocking $20 million.
It is shocking that a major market team like the Cubs would pull a Houston Astros move and contract the payroll budget to semi-pro levels in order to conserve money.
The Cubs have signed second tier free agents, but with the plan to trade them for cheaper (and riskier) minor league prospects, who if promoted only carry the major league minimum price tag of $550,000 per year. An entire 40 man roster of minimum salary players is $22 million.
The trend to slash payroll under Ricketts leadership is apparent.
The reasons are clouded in the vagueness of the concept of "rebuilding." Rebuilding has taken on many areas of gray: is it the rebuilding of the farm system to become an actual major league team? Or is it the rebuilding of the real estate in and outside Wrigley Field that has a whopping price tag of $575 million.
Or is it a scheme to make the team so bad that the ownership can shove massive changes to the neighborhood down the city's throat? Without the changes, Ricketts implores, he can't field a competitive team. Talent costs money and he needs massive new revenue streams from things like seven new outfield signs and a dense commercial real estate and sign orgy plaza outside of Wrigley.
A friend indicated that all this non-baseball nonsense could be the final excuse for Ricketts to throw up his hands and move the Cubs to the suburbs. He could take his AAA team and find a suburban mayor too desperate enough to subsidize with millions taxpayer dollars a new Cubs park.
At this point, anything is on the table except an expanding Cubs payroll.
