MLB Free Agency 2012: 4 Players Theo Epstein Can Woo to Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs finally got their man in Theo Epstein. He has the baseball genius to turn a franchise around as evident with the Red Sox. 

Theo’s next move will be to get rid of the bad contracts on the team, hire a new manager and then sign some prime free agents. 

He has no quarrels with spending money and signing players to big contracts. Theo is also smart enough to know that he needs to attempt to sign the big names on the market. 

Here are the four players that Theo will look to sign this offseason in the Cubs' conquest for a World Series.

1. Mark Buehrle

Theo is a guy who loves pitchers and stealing the big lefty Mark Buehrle from the cross-town rivals would be a great move to solidify the rotation. 

Buehrle has been one of the most consistent pitchers in baseball and has been career White Sox. He continues to give his team a chance to win. Last season he won 13 games and had a 3.59 ERA.

At 32, he is still has another four solid years left and that would be enough for the Cubs in their quest for a World Series. Buehrle is also championship pedigree and bringing in a champion would be great for this locker room. 

Buehrle would be a great middle of the rotation pitcher that Theo can get at a bargain.

2. CJ Wilson

CJ Wilson has done a great job in his two full seasons as a starter for the Rangers. He is 30 years old and has great control in his pitches. Wilson has World Series experience and the Cubs need this. 

Before this post season started, Wilson was destined for a $100 million dollar contract. He is the Rangers' ace but has not won a game in this post season. The Tampa Bay Rays torched Wilson in the opening round and he has not pitched well since.

If the Rangers win this World Series, I fully expect them to do what it takes to retain him. I also expect Theo Epstein to go after Wilson as well, as he will be a bargain compared to Sabathia. Wilson is a more viable No. 2 option for most teams and would be great in a rebuilding the Cubs rotation.

3. CC Sabathia

If Sabathia decides to opt out of his contract which I fully expect him to do, I think Theo will offer Cliff Lee-type money to him. 

Epstein knows that a World Series contender needs an ace who can pitch a lot of innings. He has built his Red Sox teams with great pitching and will look to do the same for the Cubs. Sabathia has won 19-plus games for the Yankees and will continue this trend in his next contract. It also doesn’t hurt to have a left-handed pitcher. 

CC can handle the pressures of the bright lights as evident from his time with the Yankees, so I believe he is the one pitcher that can handle the pressures of the Cubs’ curse. 

With a lot of contracts coming off the books, owner Tim Ricketts will give Theo every opportunity to get the best available players and Sabathia is the cream of the crop in terms of pitching. The price for CC should not be a concern for the Cubs.

4. Prince Fielder

The debate is up on who Theo should go after to be the face of this franchise and the first baseman for the Cubs. Prince Fielder and Albert Pujols will both be free agents this offseason and are looking for huge contracts.

Although Pujols might be the better overall player and one of the greatest in history, I expect Theo to be focused on trying to sign Prince. Fielder is four years younger and is still improving. He also has a great personality and would be very marketable for the Cubs. 

Fielder would also bring youth and power to a roster that will be improving with Starlon Castro and Barney on the rise.

Contract talks with Pujols will be hard as he is wanting $300 million for 10 years. Prince will want something similar to those numbers but I believe he can be had at a significantly cheaper price. If Theo were to give a 10-year contract to any of these players then it would be worth it to give it to Prince because he will still be productive at the end of the contract. 

Once Theo rids the bad contract of Zambrano and hopefully Soriano, look for his next move to be signing Fielder.