NL Central Notes: Arrieta's contract talks, Pirates roster

The baseball world is really seeing the ripple effects of Stephen Strasburg's mega-deal with the Nationals, and the Cubs are directly being impacted by this deal. Cubs ace Jake Arrieta hinted to reporters that he is worth more than the $175 million that Strasburg got.

Arrieta told reporters that they could be the judge of it, and he added for them to "just look at the numbers." The biggest nugget to come from Arrieta is the fact that he isn't ready to hand the Cubs a "hometown discount" (not really one since Arrieta didn't come up with the Cubs, but a discount nonetheless).

More from around the National League Central:

• Paul Seise of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote a column with a rather different approach to the Pirates future; one that might not include Gerrit Cole and Andrew McCutchen.
• Reds right-hander Homer Bailey is slowing down his comeback from Tommy John surgery,  after he felt pain during a rehab assignment on April 27th.
• The Cardinals choice to pass in free agency on offense is coming back to haunt them, especially with Brandon Moss as their cleanup hitter.
• The Brewers and Cubs might get together for some business, as the Cubs are interested in outfielder Ryan Braun.