“The Captain” has made a decision on his qualifying offer, and he is not about to abandon his first mates.
Brandon Belt is accepting the $18.4 million qualifying offer he received from the San Francisco Giants. The decision will keep him with the team that drafted him in 2009 and the only MLB club for whom he has played. The decision will also allow Belt to continue leading his “seamen.”
Belt, 33, smashed a career-high 29 home runs despite playing in just 97 games last season. He dubbed himself “The Captain” of the Giants and began to lead them with his hot hitting. He carried the team to a 107-win season and the NL West crown.
Belt wanted to return to the Giants and found the $18.4 million price to be fair. That’s more money than the $16 million base salary he earned each of the last four seasons.
Interestingly, Belt is the only MLB player to accept a qualifying offer this offseason. That’s just fine by him and the Giants, especially after they already lost one star.
