Cubs charged with international signing tax
By Tony Rusch
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According to MLB rules, any team that overspends its allotted international signing pool will be charged a tax equal to 100 percent of the amount it overspends. With the signing of Tseng, in addition to the signings of outfielder Eloy Jimenez and shortstop Gleyber Torres earlier this year, the Cubs have now exceeded their spending limit and will now face a tax in addition to spending restrictions for the 2014-2015 season.
Because of their poor showing in the 2012 regular season standings, the Cubs were granted the second highest international signing pool by the MLB for this season and have decided to absorb the cost of the tax in favor of signing some big names in the international scene.
"We budgeted for it with respect to the 100 percent tax. Next year, we'll spread our money around with some pitching instead of going after the large investments," said President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein in an interview. "We like the large investments this year."
Taking into account all the rules for international signing pools, the Cubs had a maximum signing pool of $6.8 million for this season, but with the recent signings, the club has now spent $7.9 million in the international market, bringing about a tax that will put the Cubs back around $1.1 million.
