Cubs Close to Re-Inking Dempster

According to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick, the Cubs are close to re-signing Dempster to a 4 year, $52 million dollar deal ($13 mil per year). I guess the timing of this leads to a few questions...whether this means the Cubs pursuit of Peavy has ended, whether Dempster and his agent didn't find any other overwhelming offers in free agency, or whether this deal was near completion when free agency started a few days ago and it just took a few more days to finish it up.

In comparison, it is being reported that the soon to be 32 year old A.J. Burnett has a 5 year, $80 million dollar deal on the table. Burnett was 18-10 to Dempster's 17-6, with about 60 more K's and an ERA well over a point higher.
Towel Drills: A Chicago Cubs Blog www.toweldrills.com