Yes, it's a thing that David Price wouldn't mind being a Cub and he thinks they are the next big deal:
"Winning absolutely is something you want to do," Price told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "Being a part of something special is also something you want to do. You can take that to a first-place team. You could take that all the way to a last-place team like the Cubs. With the talent they have coming up they could be a very special team in a few years as well. That would probably be the coolest city to win a championship in. They haven't done it in I'm not sure how long. To do that there that would be the coolest city to win a championship in right now."
Another completely independent source quoted Price as willing to only go to a few teams, which from the above quote must mean the Cubs:
The Rays aren't ready to wave the white flag yet, and David Price is a necessary part of any Tampa Bay resurgence. But if they do slip out of contention and look to trade Price for prospects, the Rays' ace said he'd be willing to listen if the front office gave him a choice of landing spots.
"Yeah, there's a couple of teams I wouldn't mind going to," Price said. "I have some in mind."
So, if I gave you $60M/year to lock up David Price, John Lester, and Sergio Romo (or the equivalent comp of his 2013 self) through 2020, whould you do it if you were the Cubs GM? The reward is a solid line of #1 and #2 pitchers and one of MLB's best closers, all of whom have real playoff experience, to go with that ridiculous projected lineup and whichever of Jake Arietta, CJ Edwards, Kyle Hendricsk, Travis Wood, Pierce Johnson, Arodys Vizcaino, and whoever else from the waves of pitching emerges.
To be clear, do you think this is a championship team in 2016-2019? (Projected 2019 salary in parentheses)
LINEUP:
1 Alcantara or Almora, CF, (ARB years)
2. Russell, SS (ARB years)
3. Rizzo, 1b ($11.3 M)
4. Bryant, LF (ARB years)
5. Baez, 3b (Arb years)
6. Soler, RF ($4.7 M)
7. Castro, 2b ($11.9 M)
8. Schwarber, or other Farm-raised Catcher - Beef is a FA at this point.
Bench - No more than $10M/year total
Starters
1. David Price ($28M)
2. Jon Lester ($22M)
3. Jake Arietta ($10 M) - he's a FA in 2018 so they'd have to buy out his Arb years and Boras so damn - but maybe someone equivalent.
4. ARB-scale pitcher
5. Rookie pitcher
Closer: Romo ($10 M) - (toppsmike- point taken - insert best FA closer available here)
8th inning - Arb eligable stud
7th inning - Prospect
rest of pen - no more than $10M/year
Total Salary: $117.9 M in regulars plus maybe another $30M in arbitration-level players and rookie salaries. - Still under $150M.
I think David Price thinks this is a Championship team (or he's really just trying to get STL to drive up their offer to pry him away from TB at the deadline.)
Do you?