Eric Byrnes is having a fine season, even correcting the one knock on his offense. He’s on pace to easily set a career high in walks, and his .363 OBP would stand as a career best. And of course the 31 year-old is endearing to fans with his style of play and personality. Now he’s offering the Diamondbacks a home team discount on a contract extension.
Jack Magruder of the East Valley Tribune says preliminary talks have already taken place. The Arizona Republic has Byrnes comparing himself to various outfielders who snagged five-year contracts for $9-14MM annually. Byrnes would be willing to backload the contract.
Magruder doesn’t think the D’Backs could commit even $8MM annually to Byrnes, which would be a large discount in itself. Throw in the scary five-year commitment and something has to give. Ultimately I imagine Arizona might do 4/32, but Byrnes would really be selling himself short. He could probably get $11-12MM annually on the open market. With all the outfield talent in Arizona, I still think they’ll let him go.