The Rockies appear to be nearing an extension with Carlos Gonzalez. The outfielder's Twitter account announced that a contract is "is almost a fact" and confirmed that it would be in the seven-year, $80MM range. Troy Renck of the Denver Post says it sounds like a deal will be completed this week (Twitter links).
The deal would keep Gonzalez in the Rockies' lineup through 2017. He and Troy Tulowitzki, who is under contract through 2020, will be cornerstones in Colorado for the foreseeable future.
Gonzalez is not yet arbitration eligible, so the contract would cover one pre-arb season, three arbitration seasons and three free agent years. Agent Scott Boras has a tendency to let his clients hit the open market, but this deal would put Gonzalez's free agency off until he's 32. However, Boras proved with the Jayson Werth deal that it's possible for early thirties outfielders to cash in via free agency.
The precise breakdown of the proposed deal remains unclear, but it doesn't appear as though the Rockies are getting a hometown discount.
This post was originally published on January 3rd.
