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Nov. 3 (UPI) -- The Chicago Cubs are expected to pick up All-Star first baseman Anthony Rizzo's 2020 team option. League sources told ESPN and MLB Media on Sunday that Rizzo will earn $16.5 million next season, the first of two option years the Cubs hold on him. The team has yet to confirm the decision on Rizzo's option.
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"He's just so important to everything we do on the field and off the field," Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein said in September. "There's a personal connection with every player, every staff member, everyone in the organization because of what he's done here and his personality, who he is."
Rizzo, 30, set single-season career highs with a .293 batting average and .405 on-base percentage. He ended the season with 27 home runs, 94 RBIs and 89 runs scored in 146 games.
In eight seasons in Chicago, Rizzo has a .277 average with 217 homers and 720 RBIs in 1,158 games.
The move comes one day after the Cubs picked up the $10.5 million team option for left-handed pitcher Jose Quintana and declined the $7 million option for pitcher Derek Holland. Pitcher Yu Darvish and outfielder Jason Heyward also decided not to opt out of their long-term contracts.
