While new Chicago Cubs star Kyle Tucker struggled in spring training, his contract year is officially off to a rip-roaring start now that real games are happening. Tucker homered for the fourth straight game on Tuesday night in Sacramento, part of a 7-4 Cubs victory over the Athletics. The 28-year-old slugger is hitting .353 with four home runs, 11 RBI and an OPS over 1.3 in eight games so far.

With Tucker set to hit free agency, there's concern in Chicago that he's going to be just a rental after the Cubs gave up All-Star Isaac Paredes and star prospect Cam Smith to get him from the Houston Astros. With Tucker tearing the cover off the ball to start the season, fans want to see Cubs owner Tom Ricketts pay up to keep the star around for the long haul.

Namely, longtime Chicago sports radio host David Kaplan is making demands to Ricketts: “Attn. Tom Ricketts. The time to begin contract negations with Kyle Tucker is now. The price is only going to go up.”

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Kaplan's replies were largely in agreement, and pretty much any Cubs fan will tell you they need to do whatever they can to keep the star outfielder. Losing Tucker after trading an All-Star third baseman in Paredes and a prospect with so much upside like Smith would be a tough pill to swallow.

But is Ricketts willing to play ball at the highest levels of free agency? Tucker will be one of the hottest players on the market in the winter, and some are even predicting a $600 million contract. The Cubs, despite being in a huge market like Chicago and raking in the dough as a franchise, have been a bit more frugal in recent years, leading to the concerns about them not being willing to do what it takes to keep Tucker.

There's always some risk in offering gigantic long-term contracts in baseball, but the Cubs should be looking to compete for World Series right now and in the immediate future. That means paying Kyle Tucker a boatload of money in his prime. If he winds up choosing elsewhere, so be it, but it shouldn't be due to a lowball Chicago offer.