CHICAGO (AP) Ryan Dempster made the successful switch from closer to starter this season, winning 17 games and helping the Chicago Cubs compile the best record in the National League.
Once the postseason rolled around, though, Dempster's spring training prediction that the Cubs would win the World Series fell way short when Chicago was swept in the first round for the second consecutive year.
Dempster had a chance to leave as a free agent, but his desire to get the Cubs to the World Series, help them win it all for the first time since 1908 and play in a city where he and his family are so comfortable were all factors in his decision to return Tuesday.
And a $52 million, four-year contract helped convince him, too.
"I never thought sitting there negotiating over 50-something million dollars would be such a hard thing to do," Dempster said. "Ultimately what it comes to, you have to think: What are our chances to win a world championship? I think given as close as we've gotten the last few, I just thought this is where I want to be."