Cubs Rumors: Joc Pederson Agrees to 1-Year, $7M Contract

Outfielder Joc Pederson is no longer on the Los Angeles Dodgers for real this time.

He is reportedly set to sign with Chicago Cubs once he completes his physical after coming to terms Friday, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. ESPN's Jeff Passan reported it's a one-year, $7 million contract.

It appeared as if Pederson's time with the Dodgers was going to end prior to the 2020 campaign when they seemed to trade him to the Los Angeles Angels, but the deal was called off Feb. 9. The move was hinging on another trade between the Boston Red Sox, Dodgers and Minnesota Twins that sent Mookie Betts and David Price to the Dodgers, among other pieces.

However, Passan reported the Red Sox were "spooked" by the medical reviews of pitching prospect Brusdar Graterol in the original trade. That led to a lengthy delay and the eventual reshaping of the deals that still sent Betts to the Dodgers as the headliner.

The trade between the two Los Angeles teams never went through, though.

Pederson remained in Los Angeles and struggled throughout the 2020 season even though his team won the World Series. He slashed .190/.285/.397 with seven home runs and 16 RBI while appearing in 43 games.

It was a far cry from past years.

He was an All-Star in 2015 behind a .210/.346/.417 slash line, 26 home runs and 54 RBI in his first full season in the major leagues, which hinted at the overall power to come. He drilled 25 long balls in 2016, 25 in 2018 and a career-best 36 in 2019 while also finishing with a career-high .249 batting average.

There are some concerns given his 2020 performance, but Pederson is just 28 years old and already has 64 playoff games on his resume.

He will look to return to form in the middle of Chicago's lineup alongside Kris Bryant and Javier Baez.