Ryan Dempster Returns to Chicago

The Chicago Cubs signed free agent Ryan Dempster to a four-year deal worth $52 million. The fourth year of the deal is a player option.

Dempster is 31 years old and has battled some injuries in the past. He went 17-6 last season, with an ERA of 2.96. During the regular season, he was 10-0 at home. 2008 was a career year for Dempster. His timing could not have been better.

I have mixed feelings about the length of this deal. Given his age, this is a risky move. However, if the Cubs had not given him the four-year deal, he probably would have gone somewhere else. I think Jim Hendry did a good job of balancing the investment in Ryan Dempster.

Lately, it has been the older pitchers in the league that have been dominant, so 35 is not too old. Also, Dempster has spent a lot of time in the bullpen so he does not have a ton of innings logged. In his 11-year career, he has averaged only 157.3 innings per year.

Other players who debuted in 1998 like Dempster have considerably more innings pitched per year (Roy Halladay: 229.3, Javier Vasquez: 218.0, Jarrod Washburn: 206.3).

Will Dempster continue to be a vital top of the rotation pitcher for four more years? I doubt it, but I think the cost of losing him would have been even greater than $52 million.

Did the Cubs overpay for Ryan Dempster?

• 
  No, he’ll be worth every penny.
• 
  Yes, too much and too long.

 

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