MLB Free Agency Kicks Off With Massive Deals For Stanton, Heyward, & Others
Trending News: The Need To Know About The Biggest Deal In MLB History
Why Is This Important?
Giancarlo Stanton is now the richest man in sports and could literally buy and sell many other entire teams with his new contract.
Long Story Short
Major League Baseball’s Hot Stove league kicked off with a bang, as the Miami Marlins signed slugger Giancarlo Stanton to a 13-year, $325 million deal that will surely set the stage for other deals while the Braves and Cardinals completed a blockbuster deal, swapping Jason Heyward and Shelby Miller.
Long Story
The Stanton deal is astounding and dwarfs any other MLB deal by more than $30 million. Despite the tremendous number, it seems like a good deal for both the outfielder and the Marlins.It gives him an opt-out clause after five years as well as full no-trade rights, meaning the Marlins will need to build a competitive team around him to keep Stanton happy in South Beach. But the deal is also back-loaded, giving Miami the opportunity to sign some of that talent right away. (Maybe first baseman Adam LaRoche?)
Most people around baseball say Stanton is a nice guy who wants to win more than anything. He’s also one of the premier bats in baseball, leading the league in slugging twice already. With the huge pockets of owner Jeffrey Loria, the Marlins have the money to make the deal. And they would have faced major whiplash from fans if they let yet another star leave Miami for bigger money.
Analysts are torn on the deal. ESPN’s Jayson Stark says is a beneficial deal, sort of.
Fox’s Ken Rosenthal said there was no way Miami would ever spend that kind of money for Stanton… then he recanted.
In the end, it came down to going big or going home for the Marlins. They knew Stanton wouldn’t sign another with them unless it was for a long-term deal on his terms. He got what he wanted and they got a rising superstar locked up for the foreseeable future.
This was just the first MLB domino to fall as the Braves and Cardinals deal also grabbed headlines. In it, the Cardinals get much-hyped outfield Heyward, who has underachieved after hitting a home run in his first major league at bat and earning All-Star berth as a rookie.
It strengthens an already robust St. Louis lineup while giving them flexibility for the future. Heyward is a free agent after this season, so they can kick the tires on him before deciding on anything for the long term.
It also may be just the beginning for a franchise that has won at least one playoff series each of the past four years.
For the Braves, it might be a waving of the white flag until the new stadium comes in three years. There’s word of Atlanta shopping fellow outfielder Justin Upton and others, leaving a shell of a team to build around. Of course, there are rumors of them in the hunt for Lester as well, so it might just be a matter of retooling.
In other MLB news, catcher Russell Martin broke the bank (and the hearts of Cubs and other fans) by signing with the Toronto Blue Jays for five years and $82 million. The Cubs, in turn, are one of the many other suitors for Lester, who is now probably the most sought-after free agent in the league.
Own The Conversation
Ask The Big Question: If you could pay any player in the league top dollar, who would it be?Disrupt Your Feed: Man, that sure is a lot of money for a guy who has missed 30 or more games in two of his four full seasons. He’s also topped 100 RBI just once during that time and struck out at least 140 times every year. He’s obviously becoming one of the league’s top producers, but the question marks remain. And just this deal alone ain’t gonna do much in the standings for a team that finished 19 games behind the AL East-leading Washington Nationals. Will the Marlins — the most ADD team in the league, having gone through spending sprees and fire sales more than any other team — have the patience and knowledge to build a contender?
Drop This Fact: With the deal, Stanton will make an average of $68,449 every day for the next 13 years.
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