The massive contract extension Mike Trout agreed to with the Los Angeles Angels this week should be outstanding news for Mookie Betts, but Boston Red Sox fans are right to be concerned that it will make keeping their MVP that much more difficult.
It seemed like the market for Betts was set when Bryce Harper signed his 13-year, $330 million deal with the Philadelphia Phillies, but Trout’s $430 million contract blows that out of the water. Betts is eligible to become a free agent after the 2020 season, and he said Wednesday that he does not envision signing an extension with the Red Sox prior to that.
Betts says the Sox have made past extension offer(s) that he’s turned down. Again, reiterated that hasn’t affected relationship with team.’
— Alex Speier (@alexspeier) March 20, 2019
Does Betts expect to enter this year without a long-term deal? ‘That’s exactly what I expect. I don’t expect anything to happen till I’m a free agent.’
— Alex Speier (@alexspeier) March 20, 2019
Betts added that he is not concerned about the “economics of the game” and is only focused on winning another World Series, but the comments are telling. The star outfielder is more than a year younger than Trout and has a career average of .303. He’s coming off an MVP season in which he hit .346 with 32 home runs, 80 RBI, a 1.078 OPS and 30 stolen bases. Betts also won his second Gold Glove.
Like Trout, Betts is the whole package. While a $430 million contract may not be realistic, there’s no reason he can’t aim for a deal that falls somewhere between the one Harper got and the one Trout has agreed to. While Betts doesn’t quite have the body of work that Trout has, he accomplished an incredibly rare feat last season and is getting better by the day. The Red Sox might regret not signing him to a long-term deal sooner.
