Report: Cubs called Arrieta with last-minute offer similar to Darvish deal

The Chicago Cubs landed a pretty big fish Saturday, reportedly inking right-handed ace Yu Darvish to a six-year, $126-million deal - but things could have been different.

With those negotiations nearly wrapped up, Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein apparently put in one last call to free agent and former Cubs pitcher Jake Arrieta. Epstein was checking to see if he'd accept a deal similar to the one the club offered Darvish in case Darvish turned it down, reports Jon Heyman of Fan Rag Sports.

Epstein apparently felt like he owed Arrieta the call, but the pitcher wasn't ready to accept the offer immediately, Heyman added, and Chicago ended up roping in Darvish instead.

Arrieta's agent, Scott Boras, is reportedly presenting him to clubs as a better overall performer than Darvish. According to Heyman, Boras is using Arrieta's 2015 Cy Young and superior postseason numbers to argue that his client - not Darvish - is the top free-agent starter on the open market.

Regular-season stats, 2015-17

Postseason career stats

As of Jan. 11, Arrieta apparently had offers from six teams - including the Cubs - although a recent report suggested certain clubs were only interested in signing the pitcher to a high-salary but short-term deal.