Hammel happy to be back with Cubs

Jason Hammel gave it a little Jordanesque flair when he entered Cubs offices Friday.

"I'm back," Hammel said.

The Cubs made it official, announcing their two-year contract with Hammel, who gets a guaranteed $20 million.

Last winter, Hammel signed a one-year deal with the Cubs, and he was fully aware he could be "flipped" in a midseason trade. That's exactly what happened, as he and pitcher Jeff Samardzija were shipped to Oakland.

Things are different now, and Hammel is flipping over the possibilities of sticking with the Cubs and being part of a revamped pitching rotation with Jon Lester at the top.

"Was there another big signing here or something?" Hammel asked, feigning incredulity. "I think it goes to show the commitment that we're going to turn this thing; this is Step 1 of who the Cubs want to be for the next 5-6-7-8 (years), for as long as we can. I'm obviously very excited to be a part of it."

Hammel did exactly what the Cubs wanted him to do last season in pitching well enough to get flipped. In 17 starts, he went 8-5 with a 2.98 ERA. With the Athletics, he was 2-6 with a 4.26 ERA in 13 games, 12 starts. For his career, Hammel is 59-70 with a 4.60 ERA. He also has pitched for Tampa Bay, Colorado and Baltimore.

He said there were "many reasons" for not having as much success with the A's as he had with the Cubs.

"I just didn't get it done the first four or five starts," he said. "After that, I got comfortable. You try moving your family three times a year and try to pick up a new city. There's a lot to be said about spring training and camaraderie in the clubhouse.

"I definitely think the chemistry kind of got shifted there … I'm a family guy. My family was comfortable here. That makes me comfortable. That's always going to bring out the best in me."

From the minute the Cubs traded Hammel on July 4, the vibe was they would consider bringing him back. Hammel was fine with that.

"The phone call when Theo said, 'We're moving you to Oakland,' was kind of bittersweet because I felt I had pitched my way to stay here," he said, referring to team president Theo Epstein. "And he acknowledged that. But it was something that had to be done. I knew that this was a place for me and I wanted to come back. Thankfully, Theo called me up the first day of free agency and said, 'I want to make good on this call, that I was going to be your first call,' and we went from there.

"I knew from the day I got traded last year that this was going to be my No. 1 spot."

Hammel was a teammate of Lester in Oakland down the stretch last season. Next week, the Cubs officially will introduce Lester, who gets $155 million over six years.

"His proven consistency over 8-9 years now of dominance, there's no reason why he shouldn't get the money, Hammel said. "They probably got him pretty cheap. Theo didn't want to hear me say that, but the guy is a winner. He's a proven winner. For a young team, you need guys like that to come around who know how to go about their business in this game."

Coming up 7s:

In news that took many by surprise when it broke, the Cubs announced a five-year agreement with ABC 7 in Chicago to televise 25 games per season.

"We are excited to have WLS-TV as our new television broadcast partner," Cubs president of business operations Crane Kenney said in a statement. "WLS-TV has established itself as a trusted voice in Chicago, and we look forward to a new chapter of Cubs baseball airing on the flagship station of the ABC television network."

After last season, the Cubs opted out of their agreement with WGN-TV, which has been airing Cubs games since 1948. That freed up about 70 games that do not air on Comcast SportsNet, the Cubs' cable carrier.

WGN still may be able to pick up the remaining games not aired by Comcast or WLS.

"We will complete our broadcast realignment shortly, allowing every Cubs fan in Chicago the opportunity to watch every game of what we believe will be an exciting and competitive season," Kenney's statement read.

Current play-by-play man Len Kasper and analyst Jim Deshaies are expected to be in the booth for all games, even if WLS produces its own pregame and postgame shows.

• Follow Bruce on Twitter@BruceMiles2112.