Jeff Samardzija just kept betting on himself, supremely confident in his own abilities and the escalating price for pitching, and it’s paying off with a five-year, $90 million contract with the San Francisco Giants.
Samardzija’s final decision came down to the Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers, a source close to the negotiations said Saturday, with the two National League West rivals reacting to the stunning news that Zack Greinke had agreed to a reported six-year, $206 million megadeal with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
[MORE CUBS: Cubs upgrade playoff-caliber rotation with $32 million deal for John Lackey]
The Cubs kept up a dialogue with Samardzija’s representatives – president of baseball operations Theo Epstein even met with the pitcher at a Southport Corridor bar before Thanksgiving – but saw where the negotiations would be heading and pivoted toward John Lackey.