Trade candidate Jose Reyes, 2012 free agent David Ortiz and 2013 free agents Ichiro Suzuki and Andre Ethier are earning a combined $50MM this year, but it's never too early to look ahead at a player's next contract, so here's an update on the outlook for each player's future earnings…
- Ortiz is going to be well-paid in 2012 if he keeps this up, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Red Sox DH has 14 homers and a .324/.390/.602 line this year. I looked at the market for Ortiz last week.
- ESPN.com’s Buster Olney suggests Reyes could be in position to sign for more than the $142MM Carl Crawford obtained this offseason. Reyes leads the National League with a .339 batting average, 84 hits and 11 triples. His .387 OBP and .512 slugging percentage would be career bests.
- Ichiro's agent, Tony Attanasio, told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that “nothing has been done on Ichiro’s contract beyond 2012,” when it expires. Unlike Ortiz and Reyes, Ichiro is in the midst of a disappointing season. The 37-year-old has a .260/.313/.303 line with 14 stolen bases.
- Ethier has left something to be desired as the three-hole hitter in the Dodgers' lineup this year, writes Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times. Dilbeck wonders how much a team might pay Ethier considering his relative power outage — the 29-year-old has five homers on the season.