Cubs Have Reportedly Made Anthony Rizzo an Extension Offer, ‘Still a Gap’ in Value

It looks like Anthony Rizzo‘s optimism regarding a contract extension might be well-founded, though things could come down to the wire. Jon Heyman reported Friday that, while the Cubs have made their captain an offer on a long-term deal, there’s “still a gap” in the figures being discussed.

Cubs are trying to extend star 1B Anthony Rizzo and have made him an offer. Last word heard is that there’s still a gap. But there’s nearly a week to go before season starts.

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 27, 2021

That’s not much different from the situation prior to the 2020 season, when Rizzo decried the “cutthroat” nature of the business without getting into specifics. Those comments came about a month after Jed Hoyer explained that the two sides “were pretty far apart in terms of length” when they engaged in conceptual talks in December of 2019. That feels like a lifetime ago at this point and you have to figure the gap mentioned above has closed a little based on timing alone.

Of course, that timing cuts both ways. On one hand, Rizzo will turn 32 in August and is coming off of his worst performance — whether it’s a fair comp or not really doesn’t matter — since he was first called up by the Padres. On the other hand, his self-imposed Opening Day negotiation deadline means there are only about five days left to come to an agreement.

That seems like plenty of runway to get this bird off the ground, all things considered, but this might not be fait accompli.