Levine: A Samardzija Return To Chicago May Be In The Cards
By Bruce Levine-
(CBS) -- Will Jeff Samardzija return to play for a Chicago team in the near future?
The former Cubs ace pitcher has had just moderate success since he was traded to Oakland along with Jason Hammel on July 4. The results for the 29-year-old Samardzija have been soild but not great since then, as he's 4-5 with a 3.70 ERA for the A's. Overall, Samardzija is 6-12 with a 3.21 ERA this season.
Free agency awaits the former All-American football star after the 2015 season. Ironically, both Chicago teams have a serious need for a power pitcher and money to spend in this coming offseason and perhaps next.
A small revenue club, the A's may be dumping out of salaries as fast they added them this year. An Indiana native, Samardzija will be making $8 million to $10 million in the last year of arbitration available to him this offseason.
"That is absolutely on my list," Samardzija said of including Chicago teams as possible free-agent destinations. "I am from here. I grew up here, so there are a lot of appealing things about playing here again . Even flying in to Chicago with the team last night was all about coming home."
A rumor was floated before the pitcher was traded that the Cubs front office offered Samardzija $85 million to sign a long-term deal. Was that really the deal or part and parcel to performance within the supposed six-year offer? For now, neither side really feels it's worthwhile to do any revisionist history on the subject.
As for having hard feelings about being traded, Samardzija doesn't appear to have any toward Cubs honchos.
"Hey, Theo (Epstein) and Jed (Hoyer) were very upfront with me throughout the whole process," Samardzija said. "They told me they would not just make a deal that they didn't think would help the team. At the same time, they traded me to an awesome team where we are playing for something special (the playoffs). The people and teammates here have been great."
The A's feel that Samardzija has been as good as advertised, despite the losing record.
"He comes as advertised," Oakland manager Bob Melvin said. "He loves to be out there, he wants to pitch in big games. He wants the ball and never wants to come out of a game. He does not mind throwing 120-plus pitches and wants to be looked at as that guy. He has been exactly that for us."
Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score and CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.
