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#pounditMonday, March 18, 2024

MLB executives reportedly ‘appalled’ and disgusted by Miguel Cabrera extension

Miguel CabreraThe Detroit Tigers decided to give franchise player and back-to-back MVP Miguel Cabrera a contract extension, but the terms and circumstances of the deal apparently have outraged some MLB executives.

ESPN MLB reporter Buster Olney says the industry is “in shock” over the deal and that some people are “appalled” by it.

Cabrera was already signed through 2015 and scheduled to make $22 million in each of the next two seasons. He turns 31 in April, and Detroit wanted to keep him long term.

According to FOX’s Jon Morosi, Cabrera’s extension will be for eight years after his current deal expires, which puts him under contract with the Tigers through 2023. The deal calls for him to be paid $292 million. On top of that, Jon Heyman says there are $30 million vesting options for years 2024 and 2025 which, if reached, would keep Cabrera with the Tigers for the next 12 years!

Now is this a crazy contract people should be “appalled” over? I think we need to find out the terms of the vesting options before we evaluate it. Assuming that it will be difficult for a 40-year-old Cabrera to make it vest, I’ll look at the contract as one that will pay Miggy $292 million through 2023. That seems completely reasonable for the best hitter in baseball. Nobody likes the thought of paying a guy $30 million a year when he’s 37, 38, 39 and 40, but that’s what you have to do if you want to keep the best player in baseball on your team. Plus, for as good of a hitter as Miggy is, he’ll probably still be an asset when he’s 37 and 38 and, with inflation, $30 million then won’t seem like quite as much as it does now.

Assuming the vesting years will be tough to achieve, I don’t mind this deal one bit. You have to pay to keep great players, and if there’s one player whose bat I’m most confident in long term, it’s definitely Miggy’s!

Plus, look at this reasoning from Detroit’s side:

Well that would explain why the Tigers rushed to give a player who’s getting older such a big contract despite having him signed for two more seasons. Had they waited a year, they wouldn’t have had to worry about having such a huge financial commitment to the slugger in case he gets injured. Other teams are probably wondering why they assumed that risk when they had no reason to.

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