For the last two seasons, Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout has played like one of the best in baseball.
Now he’s getting paid like one, the team announced:
According to MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez, the Angels and Trout have agreed on a massive new deal that pays the back-to-back MVP runner-up around $140 million over the next six years:
Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports the exact total is $144.5 million:
Yahoo Sports’ Tim Brown clarifies the length of the deal:
Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports breaks down the details of the contract:
Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan provides details on the negotiating process:
Contracts in baseball are typically half breathtaking, half obscene. But considering the kind of money that has been tossed around to players in the last couple of years, there is very little question that Trout deserves this monstrous raise.
In 2013, which was a near mirror image of his 2012 rookie season, Trout hit .323/.432/.557 with 27 home runs, 39 doubles, 97 RBI and 33 stolen bases. He led the league in runs scored (109) and walks (110).
If you want to gander at the advanced statistics, then his value only increases. He led MLB—by far—in WAR (10.4) and trailed only Miguel Cabrera in OPS+ (179). Defensively, Trout’s advanced numbers weren’t nearly as great in 2013 (UZR of 4.4) as they were in 2012 (13.3), but he’s still regarded as one of the premier defensive outfielders in the game.
He has been so transcendent that even the president of the United States, via the Los Angeles Times‘ Bill Shaikin, talks about his talent:
Oh yeah, and he’s only 22.
The Angels’ 2014 media guide, via ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick, listed some of Trout’s particularly astounding achievements through two full seasons in the league:
In major league baseball history, only seven players have amassed 350 hits, 200 runs scored and 175 walks before their age-22 season. The list includes Jimmie Foxx, Mel Ott, Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle, Al Kaline, Ken Griffey Jr. and Trout.
Trout is one of only four players to bat .320 with a total of 50 homers and 200 runs scored in his first two full seasons. The others: Williams, Joe DiMaggio and Trout’s Angels teammate, Albert Pujols.
Last year, Trout was the first player to lead the AL in walks and runs scored since Chicago’s Frank Thomas did it in 1994. He also joined Ty Cobb of the 1915 Tigers and Lenny Dykstra of the 1993 Phillies as the third player in history to collect 190 hits, 100 walks and 30 stolen bases in a season.
Despite all he has done, and despite the fact that, according to CBS Sports’ Matt Snyder, he was set to make less than $1 million this upcoming season, Trout was quick to shake off any talk regarding an extension.
“I’m here to get ready for the season,” he said, via Crasnick. “I don’t want to comment on the contract negotiations and stuff. I’m here to just get ready to prepare myself for the upcoming season.”
Nevertheless, the Angels decided to get negotiations out of the way now, making sure their superstar is around for a long time.
These particular contract talks never really turned into distractions, but now that there’s no chance they ever will, Trout can simply concentrate on further developing his game.
And the scariest part? When this new contract comes to an end, Trout will likely still be in his prime.
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