Jed Hoyer says Marcus Stroman's openness about contract situation a ‘positive'
Cubs President Jed Hoyer went on 670 The Score where he touched upon a number of subjects including the status of team ace, Marcus Stroman.
The 32-year-old signed a three-year contract prior to the start of the 2022 season, which included an opt-out after the second season. Stroman went public stating he and his agent tried to initiate talks on an extension with the Cubs but the club wasn’t interested in exploring it at the moment.
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Hoyer was asked again about Stroman’s comments after saying he’d keep the conversation between he and Stroman “in-house” when asked about it only a few days ago.
“I wouldn’t call it a controversy,” Hoyer said on the Mully & Haugh Show. “I actually think it’s a positive. He really wants to be here. That’s a great thing. I feel like he’s been so positive for us since he got here. I think I said it to the media, when we got him, we said, “Hey let’s let this guy be himself. He works as hard as anybody. But let’s take the boundaries off a little and let him be him and let him prepare how he wants to prepare.’ And he’s been awesome for us.”
The Cubs find themselves in a weird position.
Their five-game winning streak came to an end with Sunday’s loss to the Orioles. However, they were able to make up ground and now find themselves only a handful of games back of first place in a weak National League Central.
In other words, as it stands, the Cubs could very well be buyers, meaning it would make little sense to trade Stroman with the division seemingly up for grabs. Especially when Stroman has publicly expressed his desire to stay.
He’s certainly pitching like an ace this season.
Stroman has a record of 8-4 with a league leading 2.54 ERA to go along with 78 strikeouts. According to Baseball Reference, he also leads the League in wins, WHIP (1.04), shutouts (1), hits per 9 innings (6.09) and in WAR for pitchers (3.6).
Still, Hoyer isn’t looking beyond this season quite just yet.
“We’re thrilled to have him. I love the fact that he wants to be here,” Hoyer said. “But for me, it’s just important that we focus on 2023. Let’s focus on that.”
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