Cubs Still In Perfect Position To Sign Yu Darvish...If You Believe Brewers GM David Stearns

Who signs with the Chicago Cubs first, Yu Darvish or Bryce Harper? So, it's been a few weeks since the Cubs and Darvish supposedly had active talks again after the pitcher's favorite catcher, Chris Gimenez, signed a minor-league deal with Chicago and really nothing's happened following that. We've seen reports that Darvish has received at least one contract offer worth $100 million or more, but the 31-year-old is seeking a deal in the vicinity of $150 million-$175 million. It has been reported the Milwaukee Brewers offered a deal to Darvish, but that ship has sailed, or at least that's how it appears after Brewers GM David Stearns' latest comments. This isn't about only Darvish either, as Stearns said the Brewers are most likely not going to add another starting pitcher to their rotation. Via Tom Haudricort of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Asked Saturday if there had been any progress in his quest to add another starting pitcher, Brewers general manager David Stearns said, "We continue to have discussions on a variety of fronts, but at this point I anticipate going (to spring training) with our current group."

That was after a report said the Brewers and Darvish were talking once again on Tuesday, but obviously those talks didn't lead to anything. So, what does this mean for the Cubs? Well, if Stearns is being completely truthful and the Brewers aren't in play for a big-name starter, that means another team is eliminated from the market, which should make it easier for the Cubs to sign Darvish. There have been reports saying Darvish would prefer to go back to either the Texas Rangers or Los Angeles Dodgers, but both of those teams aren't in position to give Darvish the big deal he's seeking. As a matter of fact, Rangers' GM Jon Daniels said it's very unlikely Texas signs any of the high-end starters as well on Friday.

Again, we can eliminate the Brewers and Rangers if both GMs aren't just yanking our collective chain here. So, what about the Dodgers? Yeah, they could shed money off their payroll, but nothing right now signals that's going to be easy for them to do in order to get under the luxury tax to sign Darvish. That leaves the Cubs and the Minnesota Twins, who have also been in on the Darvish sweepstakes this offseason. However, remember the Jon Morosi report? That claimed the Twins would have to give Darvish more money compared to the Cubs if he were to choose Minnesota over Chicago.

Again, if the Brewers really are out and so are the Rangers, and with the complicated salary hurdle the Dodgers have, it's Cubs vs. Twins for Darvish. However, even if Darvish doesn't sign with the Cubs, Jake Arrieta is still available and who knows, maybe Theo Epstein ends up getting the bargain he's been trying to get after all. Plus, you know, the Cubs are sending Arrieta's equipment to Mesa.

And so we wait and we'll keep waiting until hopefully something happens, anything at all, please.