The Astros have officially struck a massive extension with star second baseman Jose Altuve. The deal, which includes a full no-trade clause, reportedly promises Altuve $151MM over five seasons.
Altuve is already under contract through 2019, a season the Astros control through a $6.5MM club option under the incredibly team-friendly deal the sides struck back in 2013. Of course, at the time, the second baseman was nowhere near the top-line performer he is today. Altuve has since changed representation, joining the Boras Corporation.
The new contract will begin at the conclusion of his existing deal, meaning the five-year term will begin with the 2020 campaign. This pact, then, will give Houston control over Altuve through the 2024 season, which will be his age-34 effort.
Altuve receives $21MM in the form of a signing bonus, with $1MM due upon final approval of the contract, $10MM later this season and $10MM in 2019. The contract provides a $26MM annual salary in each of the five seasons. That rate can escalate in the final three years of the contract depending upon his performance in the MVP voting, with a $3MM bump for a first-place finish, a $2MM bump for a second-place showing, and $1MM if he comes in third, allowing for maximum increases of $3MM, $6MM, and then $9MM in the 2022-24 campaigns.
Houston is wrapping up a historic season in which the organization broke through with a World Series title. Altuve was a central component of that undertaking. He qualified for his fourth-straight All-Star game, won his third batting title in four seasons, and capped things off by taking home honors as the Most Valuable Player in the American League.
Despite his diminutive stature, Altuve has developed into an offensive force. He put up high-quality campaigns in 2014 and 2015 before going to another level over the past two seasons. Since the start of 2016, Altuve carries a .341/.403/.539 batting line with 48 home runs. He doesn’t walk all that much and has traded just a bit of his impeccable contact ability for some additional pop, but Altuve still maintained a quality K/BB ratio (12.7% strikeout rate vs. 8.8% walk rate) in 2017.
That’s rare air for a middle infielder, making Altuve all the more valuable. While he has generally graded out as an average performer at second, there’s also value in his legs. He has already swipe 231 bags in his career and was credited with creating four runs on the bases in 2017 by Fangraphs’ BsR measure.
The new contract rewards one of the game’s best players with a significant new payday, and does so two full seasons before he’d have reached the open market. As McTaggart notes, this will easily be the largest deal ever struck in team history, handily topping the $100MM Carlos Lee contract.
Though the deal only covers five additional seasons, it does so at a top-level rate of pay. This contract is just the sixth in MLB history that includes an average annual value of over $30MM and is easily the largest extension for a second baseman cataloged in MLBTR’s Extension Tracker.
MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart first reported the agreement. Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweeted that the agreement was in place and reported the financial details in a series of tweets. Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reported the no-trade clause on Twitter.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Let us rejoice! Tuve earned it!
let’s hope grammar Hitler doesn’t open his mouth again…lol
Nice. Get to keep their guy a lot longer. Good deal in my opinion
Can they just go ahead and double the deal? That would be great.
Good deal for both sides.
Dang collusion ! Just think what he could’ve got if these teams were not in cahoots with each other. LoL
WoW! Just think what he could’ve got if there wasn’t that weird collusion stuff huh?
I don’t think there’s collusion but even if there was, Altuve isn’t a free agent. When the owners were guilty of collusion in the 80s it was with free agents.
It was sarcasm ! Sorry I forgot to use the sarcasm font . I don’t believe there was collusion either .
He needs to retire in that uniform!
But I thought his agency was Boras Corp. Oh?
Boras makes few exceptions, negotiating extensions (ex: Jered Weaver)
I’d say this one is well-deserved, for him to make an exception for. (Unless Altuve pushed Boras)
The agent works for the player. It’s stunning how hard this concept is to grasp for some.
Yea if the player wants to stay with a team and the team is willing the player tells his agent to get started negotiating. Just like some people blame Moose’s gamble entirely on Boras.
Hindsight is always 20/20, I suppose, but there wasn’t anyone on earth who follows baseball that would have predicted Moose would have gotten what he did at the beginning of the offseason. This website’s own prediction was 5/85 million and most projections were for at least 3/45. So yeah, everyone misread the market, but somehow people like to think Scott Boras is ruining the game and this is some nice confirmation bias for them.
The agent works for the player unless it’s boras
How about Strasburg’s extension with the Nats..he’s a Boras client…
Much more relevant, and recent, than Weaver. Thanks
“Boras makes few exceptions . . . This one is well-deserved, for him to make an exception for.”
1. Boras doesn’t make these decisions, the player does. What may be best for one might not work as well for others.
2. The player is getting ~$30M per year, how much more should he have held out for? Strasburg also signed an early extension for ~$30M a year, perhaps that’s the magic number.
“(Unless Altuve pushed Boras)”
You mean, unless the player listened to his agent’s advice and then chose to do what he believed to be in his best interests? Oh no, the horrors.
He also doesn’t pay state taxes in Texas which makes the contract even more valuable than if he signed somewhere besides Texas it Florida. He also loves Houston and didn’t want to leave. There is a full no trade clause that hasn’t been reported yet.
He pays property taxes which are higher than many “income” taxes in other states. Trust me, the government will get their share
Every state has property taxes, so if he was in a state with income taxes, he would be paying both. Any teams in New York or California would be the worst places to play if you want to keep as much money as possible.
But taxes are only one factor, cost of living should also be considered. Texas is always a favorable place to be in comparison to other states that have major league teams.
Strasburg makes $25 mil I think
Agreed. As shrewd as Boras may seem/is, he’s just giving his guys advice. The players don’t have to take it and can tell their agent what to do.
I thought he left Boras corp?
He was originally with Octagon but left them in 2012 for Boras, then in 2013 he left Boars for Octagon. ( mlb.com/news/houston-astros-second-baseman-jose-al… ). Then in 2016 he left Octagon again for Boras ( mlbtraderumors.com/2016/07/jose-altuve-hires-scott… ).
Unless Altuve pushed Boras? I think you mean Boras does whatever Altuve tells him to do. Also, pretty sure Boras doesn’t mind a 5 year 151 million contract on a player that is still two full seasons a5way from reaching free agency. Amazing job by the Astros to basically make him an Astro for life
Pushed? If he needs to push the agent then he needs another agent. The agent works for the player. It’s pretty simple.
Boras doesn’t call the shots, but he’s made known that he favors testing free agency rather than taking extensions. Players know that. So if a player chooses Boras, it usually means that they agree with his policy. But if a player wants an extension, there is nothing that Boras can do. He will never go against one of his clients wishes, because it would immensely hurt his reputation.
It’s always great for a team to lock up its homegrown talent, but I just don’t really like when teams sign these extensions two+ years before they’ll even kick in. He’ll be around 30 when the new contact starts and who knows if he’ll already be experiencing decline already. It’s happened before.
well his deal will be ending by age 34-35 instead of starting
Remember the Ryan Howard extension? what a smart play by Amaro Jr. to lock up his homegrown player to a discounted extension. It would have been a shame if the former MVP Howard had left the organization at that crucial time…
The Howard extension was not a discount.
And neither is this one. Maybe in term. But not in AAV
we agree.
“what a smart play by Amaro Jr. to lock up his homegrown player to a discounted extension.”
Couldn’t let that pass, Sorry.
The Howard extension was widely panned at the time on Phillies’ blog and at many of the major sabr sites
It was foolish and premature. Period..
Do you work for MLBPA or an agent?
sarcasm. google it.
chops busting. google it.
Rusty trombone. Google it.
I see what you are trying to do here: But Ryan Howard’s extension was a mistake because one-dimensional players who aren’t athletic just don’t tend to age well. Howard was not a good athlete, He didn’t have any skill besides the bat and when that slowed and he wrecked his knee he was done. Altuve does many things well – he hits, he has a bit of power, he runs very well, his defense is good enough that he can stay at second for a while and then transition to the outfield I would guess, he’s not old. Howard had none of those attributes.
That doesn’t change the point that the extension might be a bit too early. If Altuve suffers a major injury in the next couple of years that hurts his ability to perform at an elite level, then the extension won’t look so good.
Well, yes, but predicting a catastrophic injury is impossible. Sure, maybe tomorrow Altuve gets his leg cut off in a wood-chipper accident, but that’s probably unlikely. And even more relevant, teams insure long-term contracts like this, so they can help minimize their risk in that way.
One example that comes to mind is David Wright
That’s why teams “Insure” the contracts in case of injury
I could understand this if he just had his breakout season, but he’s been doing this for years. Let’s say that Altuve says he wants to be extended, and will do five years at $30M. Houston declines to extend, opting to wait another year. If hits .330+ AGAIN(typical Altuve season already), he and Boras would demand seven years, and an even higher AAV. If my choices are two years of Altuve for cheap against seven with five at market price, I’ll take the seven easy, mark it off my to-do list, pat myself on the back, and see if I can extend Springer or Correa as well…
That’s the same risk they run if they wait to sign him. The thing is, if they wait until he hits FA, they don’t get him at 5/151. Altuve is leaving money on the table and the Astros are gambling he remains a top tier player for a total of 7 more seasons.
Can’t you say that about every single contract that’s signed by an athlete in every sport?
Correction: Altuve is potentially” leaving money on the table.
Any player can get hurt at any time! Does that mean teams should stop signing players? Dumb!
It’s always a gamble. If you wait until he can smell free agency then he might decide to see if the grass is greener elsewhere.
See: Howard, Ryan
If they wait one more season he might feel like he is to close to FA at that point. Two years is the perfect timeframe for young player extensions. Insurance hedges against any major injuries. Great deal for both sides.
Well he deserves it.
Deserve has nothing to do with it.
It kinda has everything to do with it. A player who performs, and has the work ethic, and personality like Altuve does deserves a long term extension, worth a large sum of money.
What???
Unforgiven reference?
Nice pickup, Dimitrios!
Very exciting day! I hope more extensions are on the way
Sadly, I think Correa and Springer have both stated (at least through their agents) that they won’t sign longterm deals until free agency. That’s not saying they won’t sign with the Astros, but that they want to go through the process. I’m pretty certain that Correa and his agent indicated this. They both deserve it. Let them test the waters and lets throw the bank at them.
Deserve what?
@ Free Clay Zavada, Altuve has been worth $205.3 million dollars in his career thus far, per Fangraphs. Even if he does decline, the Astros have gotten a massive surplus value for their expenses, and it’s an absolute bargain for the club.
I think it’s this train of thought which is the most problematic part of signing these deals. The surplus value he has provided to this point in his contract has nothing to do with the extension.
The only question we should be asking is if he will be worth 151 million dollars from 2020 through 2024. Right now, yeah, it looks like it, but a lot can change in two years.
You’re missing the point. The problematic part of signing these deals is that the system has failed baseball and there is no way to fix it.
But hey, continue to be a pessimist when Astros fans around the world are going to celebrate tonight.
By failed system, do you mean the same one that the owners of MLB teams, and players that belong to the MLB Players Association both agreed upon?
I’m not sure “failed” is appropriate because baseball is being played today, and it looks like will be played throughout the entire regular and postseason this year.
Is it disadvantageous to some parties and advantageous to others? Yes, but there is hardly ever a completely equitable system.
The heck are you on about mate?
Do you have a link to that Fangraphs calculation?
it’s right on his player page on Fangraphs
Yes, but that is a dubious and IMHO erroneous calculation – or application of the data. Fangraphs themselves say it’s based on this:
” WAR converted to a dollar scale based on what a player would make in free agency.”
Based on the numbers Fangraphs uses (26.2 WAR and $205.3MM) they’re estimating that a WAR was ~7.8MM in free agency during Altuve’s career.
No team can afford to pay $7.8MM for every WAR they get – what they “would” make in free agency. – especially the biggest winners. The Dodgers’ payroll would have been at least $437MM last season if that were the case, and a 66 win team should have a payroll of 140MM (based on Fangraphs own calc that a replacement level team would win ~48 games).
Just because teams are willing to pay for marginal wins in free agency (and if this last offseason is any indication they may be LESS willing to do so going forward), doesn’t mean a player was “worth” Fangraphs calculation of what they “would” have made..
It’s dubious thinking at best, and Fangraphs, IMO, does a disservice to the larger baseball junkie community by presenting it that way.
oh I agree. was just providing where that number was coming from.
for what it’s worth, Fangraphs seems to recognize these calculations may be an issue (Jeff Sullivan, I believe)
@kennon Riley the surplus value someone provides to you prior to them reaching free agency is completely irrelevant when it comes to extensions and paying guys for those years into their mid 30s is precisely what GMs were fired for in the past. The reality is the Astros didn’t owe Altuve a damn thing just like every other team doesn’t owe any player anything as soon as they reach free agency. As soon as they’re free agents what they have done in the past is irrelevant pay guys for what they are worth in the next 3,4 or 5 years and it’s always less than they get. Always. Always.
Well duh.
That’s not the point. You do need to compensate players for what they’ve done if you ever expect them to sign pre-free agency extensions.
SCORE already has the deal done at 5/151 starting 2020
CBS Sports (via MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart, & Jon Heyman)
“Astros and Jose Altuve reportedly agree to five-year, $151-million contract extension.
The Houston Astros and reigning AL MVP Jose Altuve are closing in on a contract extension that will pay the second baseman $150 million over five years, MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart reports. (mlb.com/news/jose-altuve-near-5-year-extension-wit…) Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports is reporting that the two sides have an agreement on a five-year $151-million extension. (twitter.com/JonHeyman/status/974754450513547265) Per McTaggart, this new contract won’t kick in until 2020, which means Altuve will be under contract through the 2024 season, or his age-34 campaign.”
cbssports.com/mlb/news/astros-and-jose-altuve-repo…
I think this is a great deal! 30M a year for a perennial MVP isn’t a steal, but it’s below market value. Plus, it’s only 5 years. I believe Altuve will still be close to elite at 34. So, it’s great for the Astros.
By what measure do you pronounce it “below market value”?
The actual value has to include the bargain basement value in the first two years.
No, he was already signed for those years and it was very team friendly.
That has zero bearing on whether the extension is below market value, because he didn’t sign for those years because he already was committed to them.
Well earned and deserved.
Deserve has nothing to do with it. Earned? Absolutely.
You do realize that deserve and earn are synonyms, right?
Not exactly
This had to happen from the Astros’ perspective. And it’s only fair they pay the man after all he’s done for that franchise on really team-friendly contracts. But it will be interesting to see how many — and which — of its core players Houston will lock up once the group behind Altuve and Keuchel get closer to free agency. Once those guys’ hit arbitration, the Astros are going to see their payroll skyrocket into uncharted territory for that organization, which could force some tough decisions.
I don’t think it’s that big a deal. They will let the pitchers and Marwin walk, with a QO attached. Bregman is Correa insurance to a degree.
I think Springer is the player to target. The outfield is unproven and Reddick probably isn’t worth keeping after his deal.
Springer and Correa have the same agency.
Agents compete with each other for players.
Do not mistake the fact that Springer and Correa will be used by their agency to “make their bones” and convince other players – even HS players – to use them as representation instead of another agent like….
the Boras Corporation.
“And it’s only fair they pay the man after all he’s done for that franchise on really team-friendly contracts.”
Did the Astros force him to sign those contracts?
It’s only fair that players who get long term deals and produce negative value in their last years of deals pay the money back right? Wonder all these people who pretend like the Altuve and Sal Perez’s of the world are living in poverty say it’s only fair if josh Hamilton pay the angels back like all of his salary in his last year or if David Wright should pay back his like last 3 years of salary to the Mets.
I bet you are really fun to be around Czon! WoW!
I’m betting it will come back to bite them in the end. But that’s cool, since I don’t root for them.
$150 million? Through his age-34 season!? For reigning MVP who provided $200M+ of value so far on his current bargain contract, that runs through 2019.
Astros did very well for themselves. So did, Altuve. No one else is surprised, Scott Boras is Altuve’s agent, whom negotiated the extension? Not even slightly surprised?
How do you calculate the $200MM in value?
Math
Nope. The only thing that will “bite them” is potential injuries. I feel like Altuve is a guy who won’t break down until he’s in his late 30’s, not mid.
Wow, you can see the future? What’s the next PowerBall numbers?
There is also a full no trade clause that hasn’t been reported.
How far we’ve come from having a $30M team to having a $30M player. The last 4 years has been quite a ride. Love it!
Yeah, I just love paying $150 per ticket.
Well, ticket prices have nothing to do with player salaries. Teams charge what the market will bear for ticket prices.
You need to retake economics class.
Why? He is absolutely right. Maybe you should sign up for one of my economics classes. After all, it’s basic supply and demand. The labor theory of value has been totally discredited.
I can’t wait to go to the Final Four next week. Tickets are super cheap because the players don’t get paid, right?
Well said, sir.
Coaches do. Too much, too. Duh.
The coaches get paid a pittance compared to what a player payroll for a professional sports team would be paid. (Coaches and managers get paid in MLB, too, so not sure what your point is there). How about the Alabama Crimson Tide football team? They play in a stadium that holds 103,000 seats, which is sold out every game. The cheapest tickets for an Alabama home game, the nosebleed seats, cost 163 dollars on the resale market as of today for next season. Tickets on the 50-yard-line, 100 seats up, cost $500 each. Tickets on the field level are four-digits. No player on the Alabama football team gets paid. (we’ll leave the illegal booster payments out of this).
Ticket prices have almost nothing to do with player salaries.
holy cow. I’ll stick to baseball.
So, we’ve gone from nothing to almost nothing. You’re getting there.
Sufferfortribe…You’re wrong about salaries affecting ticket prices. You ever heard of Variable/Dynamic ticket pricing? It’s based on Supply and Demand.
But also, check out this link, it’s more than a year old but still relevant:
https://www.cbsnews.com/media/the-7-most-and-least-expensive-stadiums-to-watch-a-major-league-baseball-game/
Dodgers are on the Least Expensive List with an average ticket price of $21.60 in 2016, when their payroll was $250 million.
Angels average ticket was $19.60 with a $161 million payroll.
Meanwhile…
Yankees were on the Most Expensive List with an average ticket price of $56.40 with a payroll of $222 million.
Cubs average ticket was $64.06 with a $164 million payroll.
This pretty much proves that player salaries have very little effect on ticket prices.
MLB teams revenues come mostly from the huge TV deals that they sign! Which in turn are driven by advertising !
blah blah blah. try the $7 tickets and stand by the pump. most good tickets are under $100 if you aren’t able to walk to the pump. or maybe stubhub for a discount.
I’m in SoCal. What’s a $7 ticket? Oh, wait, that’s what parking costs…..at a minor league game.
Yep, parking is contracted out to companies who bid on those contracts. Most of your parking fee goes to the company that has that contract, not the team.
My local team handles the parking, not a separate company. And most of the fees go to the owner of the property……the city.
But you keep trying. This is becoming fun.
Three words — Nick Saban’s salary.
And if parking fees go to the city, as you claim – and I have no reason to doubt you – then you know, of course, that parking fees don’t contribute to player salaries, correct?
So, you’ve now used parking fees to deflect away from our discussion on ticket prices and salaries? Nice try.
$5 – $10 for parking garage a few blocks away. $7 nosebleed seats. walk to the pump in left center field. enjoy seeing the world champs.
Keep digging that hole.
Uh, did you not see the part where I said I live in SoCal?
Honestly, if you can’t afford to go to a game in a city where baseball thrives, you aren’t who the MLB is targeting. They aren’t going to drop the prices if every game is at a capacity crowd just to get people from a lower class to games. Money is money, no matter who it comes from. If you won’t buy the tickets, someone else will. And the prices won’t change until that someone else won’t buy the tickets. And the salaries really don’t effect the prices anyways. A 100 something million payroll hardly impacts the billion dollar industry
Actually, you brought up parking prices. They aren’t a significant source of income for a major league team and the expense of parking at a stadium has nothing whatsoever to do with player salaries or ticket prices.
Nick Saban makes 11 million dollars a year. The average major league baseball payroll last year was around 114 million dollars. Try again
So why complain about prices? Altuve was extended by the Astros but you brought up tickets in SoCal? Sounds like you just want to complain. Maybe try Uber or split parking with a friend if parking is too much.
It’s an economic thing Goat. No need to use your judgmental comment about lower class people. No surprise from you though.
Some owners have the parking concessions with the stadiums . Some are owned by cities
and others are private contracts. It depends on the team
and the parking locations !
yes!!!!! a thousand times yes!!!!!
Boy about to get paid!
Good for Altuve. He’s a great player and plays the game the right way. I’m a Ranger’s fan and have a ton of respect for the guy.
It is really great to see that even fans of other teams are applauding the move. That just goes to show how well respected Altuve is by all fans and it’s well deserved, he’s one of my favorites and I wish he were on my team.
I don’t think anyone can deny that both the Astros and Altuve deserve this extension.
Amazing deal for Altuve when you consider the offseason. That said, it’s also a good deal for the Astros. Altuve has had a great tenure with the Astros. He’s the kind of player you’d want to build a team around.
Must be a good day for the Astros fanbase, congrats to them.
Maybe there is hope for Correa not exiting Houston.
He’s controlled for 4 more years. No rush yet.
In 2022 the Astros will pay one man roughly $30.167 million, ~150% of their entire payroll a decade earlier.
He deserves $1
I could see Houston regretting this deal. Altuve just seems like the kind of player that will break down and regress a little earlier than others. This might be unfair to him, but it’s sort of like Dustin Pedroia. Who had a good 2016. But other than that recently… Idk… For another MVP winner, I’d hate to be paying him 30 Million and he’s currently 33(?)
I see Houston being very happy with this deal. 34 isn’t that old. He may lose some speed, but all his other tools will still be above average.
Wow, you can see the future? What’s the next PowerBall numbers?
So you reply to Astros_fan_84 about knowing the future but not Aircool? Obviously you’re not biased.
Why would anyone accuse me of seeing the future? I’m not making any definitive claims. I said that I “could” see Houston regretting this deal. And I’m simply making a comparison to Dustin Pedroia, who is also an MVP winner, and profiles similarly to Altuve in a lot of ways. Outside of 2016, Pedroia hasn’t been the same player in the last 4 years, coincidentally over the almost exactly the same age period as Altuve’s new deal.
It doesn’t seem unreasonable to me, maybe I’m insane, to suggest that signing a player 2 years in advance for a price that is certainly not below market value, even for such a short period, isn’t exactly urgent business. I don’t think it could possibly turn out as bad as the Ryan Howard extension, that’s complete nonsense for sure, but there is nothing to suggest this will be a good deal as of yet. It’s way too early to judge.
Aircool…wasn’t really directed towards you, I don’t see a problem with your comment. I was pointing out the hypocrisy of sufferfortribe’s comment that he called out Astros_fan_84 for knowing the future because of his opinion but didn’t say the exact same thing to you for your opinion. He is obviously biased towards your viewpoint.
He hits for average that’s about it.
You must be the smart baseball guy in your circle of friends…
Altuve only hits for average but has an OPS over .800 for the last 4 years and over .900 for the last 2. Also, throughout his career, he has a 162 Game Average of 40 doubles and the last 2 years he has hit 24 homers.
But yeah, he only hits for average.
Don’t feed Yankee trolls.
I wonder though. With salaries increasing and the CBT regularly increasing, Towards the end of his contract, will 30 million not seem like a as much money as it does today? Like will a lot of players be earning $40 million a year by then?
If you would’ve said this a year ago, it would’ve appeared that way. Judging by how this offseason went, not likely.
In what way has he shown any signs of being a player that breaks down?
I’m not saying he has. I’m just saying, neither did Pedroia until he approached 30. Small guys that give it their all, and swing aggressively. Could break down similarly, or not. I think it’s fair to say that if Pedroia got a 5 year 120 million deal 4-5 years ago. That would have been an overpay. This could be similar, possibly. And being done in advance, it seems unnecessary.
Sure, but Altuve is significantly out performing anything Pedroia ever did, and Pedroia is at the age where if it were an Altuve extension, he would be in his last year, except Pedroia has another 4 years (though, that total extension was only 8/110)
It’s actually a pretty good comp financially. But again, Altuve crushes Pedroia in performance.
Pedroia crushes Altuve in WAR. Altuve is a below average defender.
Thru their age 27 season.
Dustin Pedroia – 48.4 fWAR
Jose Altuve – 26.2 fWAR
YankeeMan, you might want to work on your research skills…
Pedroia’s fWAR of 48.4 is for his entire career. His total fWAR through his age 27 season (2011)was 24.6.
Altuve’s fWAR through his age 27 season (2017) is 26.2.
I’m not sure if you are disagreeing with the comp. But fundamentally, if Pedroia signed a 5 year 110-120 million dollar extension that would have kicked in 5 years ago, and was signed 7 years ago, would you say that would have been a bad deal?
Fundamentally, I think this *COULD* be identical to that hypothetical.
Altuve highest annual salary for 2nd basemen, cano highest guaranteed money overall for 2nd base
I love it. Makes the Astros less likely to sign top free agents down the road.
In three years when he was due to be a free agent at the age of 30.
If you want the Astros to lose and get stuck with bad money you should want them to sign free agents to multi year deals for 100 mil plus. Those deals are generally always god awful.
For some reason people think getting the shiny new free agent is good, it’s almost always awful.
Altuves better than any player they would’ve signed anyways. He’s a superstar who makes them way better.
Altuve deserves everything that he is getting.
Goat—you need to check your spelling buddy.
Yeah go ahead and sign Choo again, his contract has worked out real well for you.
Who are the others that have had 30 million annual contract? Arod, Kershaw… And who thanks and may the grammar force be with you
I remember reading how Altuve showed up and the Astros rejected him at first, probably due to his size. He trained hard and was persistant to get another opportunity and look at him take advantage of it. An icon to people 5.10 and under.
Market trend, higher annual value with less years.. If Machado has so so season maybe 5yrs 50m = 250.
Josh Donaldson will look at this deal and still think he’s getting $200 million, but he just got capped at about 5 years, $130 million.
4 and 35 = 140 would be perfect for jd
I’ll wager he won’t be worth that.
Donaldson should remember how much older he is then Altuve.
By structuring this as an extension, is it the AAV from 2018-2024 that counts toward the luxury tax threshold? Also, presumably since 2019 is an option, for this extension to go into effect, it must guarantee 2019?
Or do they decline the option and have the extension start 2019?
I wonder though. With salaries increasing and the CBT regularly increasing, Towards the end of his contract, will 30 million not seem like a as much money as it does today? Like will a lot of players be earning $40 million a year by then?
So is the signing blockade over?
Altuve is an absolute joy to watch. Yes, his team is superior to mine, but I get to watch him play 19 times every season and that makes it totally worth it. He deserves every dime.
In a recent poll, I was asked who was my all time favorite 2nd baseman. I picked Jose Altuve. (And I’m OLD!)
Short people got no reason to live. But millions of dollars help.
And make it rain make it rain make it rain
11 years 175 million dillars total, the Astros and Altuve can live with that. No the Astros shouldn’t wait and see what happens if Altuve can come anywhere close to that next year that number a be at 37-42 A year. And Altuve is gonna go from 6.5 in 2019 to around 28 in 2020 definetly a WIN, and still hits free agency one more time for his last hooooorah.
I don’t like this contract for the Astros. Too much of Altuves value comes from speed. Speed which he won’t have into his thirties.
He’s a great hitter that is adding power. he’s been stealing less bases and hitting for more power the past couple years.
He’s the best pure hitting baseball. Speed is not his best attribute.
Nice! 5 years $151 million. This just goes to show the new smarter trend that’s happening now in baseball is going to work in owners and fans favor. The player will get his worth just with fewer years. Teams are paying for production and not getting stuck with dead money when the player starts to decline. They say that next years free agent class is star studded but if you look at the ages of the stars except Harper and Machado, I see all red flags. Next year’s market might be slower than this year’s. Hopefully the players have accepted this new smarter trend or it’ll be a lot of players without jobs or forced into retirement.
Lol most of the big spenders will be under the cap so they’ll have plenty of money to spend. There’s red flags for every free agent who is 29+. The red flag is everyone offers him deals based on his production in his prime while you get the start of his decling years. Machado and Harper are complete outliers as both are generation like talents who rarely reach free agency.
I’m surprised they didn’t rip up the current contract and spread the money over more years and reward Altuve this year. Maybe they are up against their budget, but otherwise I’d think Altuve would want a chunk of change now.
After watching this offseason and coming off an MVP season and $150 million on the table, would you turn that down?
I definitely agree with hojostache year. Had they scratched the current 2 yr deal and done a 7 yr, 164 mil (add the 13 mil left in his current 2 yr deal), it would’ve added about 17-18 mil on payroll but knocked off 7-8 mil a year down the road. but I guess the Astros probably want that big short term cushion now and not the small long term cushion later. Also.. there’s a chance my math is off but u get the point.
Time value of money
It looks like with the signing bonuses it was mostly a moot point. I think it is a great deal for both sides because they made the money work.
As an Astros fan, I’m thrilled about this contract. We in Houston love Altuve and his awesome story from when he was a 16 year old to an MVP/World Series champion. Congrats Jose! A lot of ppl on this comment section talking about him slowing down in his mid 30s and he may or probably will. But stop comparing him to Pedroia or lesser players. He’s small, but he’s a better hitter than Pedrioa ever was and a better base stealer. Probably will hit for more power when all is said and done.
I love Pedroia, but Altuve is definitely the better and more dynamic player at peak performance. Pedroia is likely a Red Sox HOFer, Altuve is likely a baseball HOFer.
The last scrappy HOF level 2nd baseman the Astros had spent his entire career playing for them. This is a great step toward making Altuve the next one to do so.
After this years Free Agency I’m sure Boras/Altuve we’re quick to not test the FA market next season. Being able to lock up a player so his contract ends at 34 is a beautiful thing.
Good for him.Proves that you do not have to be a big guy to be a good player.
This feels largely unnecessary this early.
This reminds me of Tulo, Braun, and Howard.
A player getting a top of the market extension more than 365 days before their current contract expires.
I believe Howard tore his achillies on the last play before his extension started. If they had waited, no way does he land 5/$125 that off-season.
Does Braun still get 5/$105 on the open market after 2015?
Does Tulo still get 6/$118M after 2014?
Does Miggy still get 8/248 after 2015?
I feel like the Astros could have given Altuve this same contract in a year from now, even if he repeats his 2017 season in 2018.
But, that is treating Altuve only like an asset, and not like a human. The Astros are also signaling that they will reward a player that helps them. They can make him the face of the franchise, and show a guy like Correa they are committed. They also manage to have the contract end early enough in age that if Altuve regresses/gets hurt, they can still get away from the deal early enough and not set the organization back like Miggy’s deal in Detroit does.
Overall, it’s mostly fine because it’s a player reward. But I doubt he is worth that second deal, while providing a massive amount of surplus value on the first deal.
He has only two years left, Prime for an extension. They clearly didn’t want a 10 year deal on the books, so a short term but huge aav makes sense.
Two different right handed, small second basemen:
Through the age of 27, the same age at the time of extension that would begin in their age 30 season:
Dustin Pedroia – .300/.366/.441 – 116 wRC+ – 48.4 fWAR – 6743 PA
Jose Altuve – .316/.362/.453 – 124 wRC+ – 26.2 fWAR – 4311 PA
Pedroia, in overall WAR value per PA, is quite a bit ahead of Altuve. But Altuve has had two seasons that Pedoria never came anywhere near offensively.
Both were under team control through their age 29 season, coming off great team seasons.
Pedroia’s extension was 8/110, while being owed $10M in 14, and 11/0.5 co for 2015. Then the extension with a backload, then a front load toward the backhalf.
Altuve’s deal will pay him more for less years, but they won’t have to care about his regression on the back end of the deal at all.
So Altuve is better offensively, Pedroia valued better defensively according to defensive metrics. Both undersized 2B on great teams that gave team friendly extensions while young. Both rewarded with massive paydays 2 years before their team control would end.
Feels a lot more like a player reward than an asset based investment. Makes sense, and the Astros have avoided bad moves so they can absorb a risk like this, tell Correa they are committed, and make Altuve the face of the franchise and create a lot of good will.
You realize those are Pedroia’s career stats, NOT his stats through age 27, right?
Pedroia’s WAR through his age -27 season was 24.6, not 48.4.
There has to be a better way to give a financial reward to players who excel while on cheap contracts. Why not just rework the current contract and load it with performance incentives?
Because there will always be another team willing to offer guaranteed money.
Because the CBA doesn’t allow for performance incentives.
Like it. Reward your guys for their performance. Better to pay a known quantity than chance it with an unknown quantity. I’m still angry at the Sox for being too cheap to sign Lester to the contract he deserved, and then they turn around and give that money plus more to David Price. Stupid decision.
Beautiful! Big sigh of relief in Houston I’ll bet. And in 3-4 years, he’ll be considered a bargain anyways at that rate.
30 million a year..smh. That’s ridiculous.
Oh, you’re in trouble now.
Jose Altuve has helped make the very rich owner of his team even richer; I guarantee the money Altuve makes in his career will be dwarfed by the net worth of Jim Crane. And nobody goes to a game to watch Crane sit in his box
Deal sounds good to me. Altuve gets more money immediately.
Pretty good pay day
With the bonus’ handed out does it reduce the aav when the new contract starts?
What does this do for free agent infielders to be? Say, Brian Dozier. What kind of money would be likely for him in the way of an extension? Given the facts that he is older and in a walk year. Without getting into comparisons because I’m not saying that he’s Altuve but one has to think his reps are going to use this deal somewhere somehow in any negotiations.
It seems to me from signings over the last year that there is little or no continuum between the salary offers for different levels of player.In other words,inasmuch as Altuve is an elite player and Dozier is just good,there will not be a comparison made in reaching their salary offers..Whereas before one could say maybe 1/2 or 2/3 the AAV,now it seems to be no more than maybe 1/3 and for many less years.
Has anyone else ever noticed that when Scott Boras is involved in news, it’s usually reported by Jon Heyman first?
This site cannot write about Altuve without using the word “diminutive.” I started reading, and kept telling myself, “wait for it…. wait for it….” And there it was.
The numbers in this article do not match the numbers reported on their sister site, Roster Resource. Luhnow said in the press conference that this was a 7-year contract that replaced his existing contract. According to Roster Resource, his salary, starting THIS year is 9MM, 9.5MM, 29MM, 29MM, 29MM, 29MM, and 29MM for a total of 163.5MM.
As an Angels fan this hurts, as a Baseball fan I have to admit – WELL DESERVED. Heck of a ball player .