As you may or may not know, Manny Machado can become free as air in a year. He signed with the Padres for 10 years for the 2019-2028 seasons, but has an exit option next fall.
And with prices going up for stars, he plans to use it.
His primary plan seems to be to break the bank in San Diego again and the club’s plan seems to be to keep him in town. He’s really important to the Padres.
In fact, Ken Rosenthal would not be surprised to see him sign a contract extension this winter, to reassure everyone.
Because yes, the Padres could sign him right now. This could erase the last six years of the contract to start from scratch.
That’s what the Padres did yesterday with Yu Darvish, precisely.
The case of Darvish is not insignificant since it shows that the club does not want to fool around with players who are approaching autonomy. Darvish’s contract (six-year contract…at age 36) is a good example.
We know that the club is not afraid of long contracts. Xander Bogaerts and Fernando Tatis Jr. are good examples, but we also know that the club offered $342 million to Trea Turner and $400 million to Aaron Judge this winter. The two preferred to sign in the east of the country.
Could Machado, like many free agents from the last crop of free agents, have a contract that is too long? Yes. In fact, the 30-year-old could sign another 10-year contract.
I always thought that a contract similar to the one signed in 2018-2019 ($300 million over 10 years) could be realistic for Machado, in terms of adding years of control… but Bob Nightengale is talking about $400 million. Ouch.
When he signed his contract, it was normal to see Tatis Jr. signing more than him. He was entitled to $340 million, including $306 million for his 10 years of autonomy.
But now the tables have turned within the organization and prices have gone up in the market, meaning Machado wants/worth more money.
But OK. With $280M on Xander Bogaerts and $340M on Fernando Tatis Jr., can the Padres give $400M to Manny Machado…and $500M to Juan Soto?
Because yes, if Soto stays, it will cost EXPENSIVE in curse…
- Dana Brown, the new GM of the Astros, had promised to try to extend the contracts of his young people … and now he has just bought two years of autonomy with a five-year contract for Cristian Javier.
