Jeff Samardzija admitted this week that he feels a responsibility to the MLBPA as he seeks a long-term contract extension.

"Without a doubt," Samardzija said. "I've said it before: Personally, numbers and money don't really drive me. What does drive me is protecting and setting up the players behind me, the future generations, so that I'm not signing any of these crummy early deals for seven or eight years."

The Chicago Cubs have had talks about extending Samardzija's contract, but they have mainly led to trade rumors.