Braves outfielder Joc Pederson has declined his end of a $10MM mutual option in favor of a $2.5MM buyout, the Associated Press reports. Unlike teammate Adam Duvall, who also declined a mutual option this week, Pederson has more than six years of Major League service time and is thus a free agent now that he’s declined his end of the option.
Signed by the Cubs to a one-year deal last winter, Pederson was guaranteed $7MM in the form of a $4.5MM base salary and the $2.5MM buyout on the option he’s now declined. He can’t receive a qualifying offer by virtue of the fact that he was traded midseason (from Chicago to Atlanta), though it’s unlikely he’d have been a candidate for such an offer anyhow.
Pederson, 30 in April, posted similar overall numbers in 256 plate appearances with the Cubs and 173 plate appearances with the Braves, resulting in an overall .238/.310/.422 batting line on the season. He connected on 18 home runs, 19 doubles and three triples.
It’s perhaps encouraging that the left-handed-hitting Pederson, who has some longstanding struggles against left-handed pitching, hit lefties at a solid .265/.348/.378 clip in 2021 — albeit in a small sample of 112 plate appearances. However, it’s also concerning that his typically outstanding production against right-handers dwindled; in 369 plate appearances with the platoon advantage, Pederson slashed an uncharacteristically pedestrian .230/.298/.435.
When the page flipped to the postseason, the “Joctober” narrative took full effect, as Pederson clubbed a pair of pivotal pinch-hit home runs during Atlanta’s NLDS victory over the Brewers. Pederson homered early in the NLCS as well, but his bat went dormant for the remainder of the postseason, as he finished out the playoffs in a 2-for-26 swoon with a walk and eight strikeouts. It’s worth pointing out that, fun as the “Joctober” moniker may be, his career postseason line of .256/.332/.482 now quite closely resembles his lifetime .232/.332/.462 regular-season batting line.
Pederson will now head back out into what he hopes will be a healthier free agent market than he encountered last winter, when many clubs simply opted not to spend on the heels of a 2020 season played without ticket revenues. The expiring collective bargaining agreement will create similar uncertainty for free agents, but it’s likelier that teams will be more amenable to spending than they were last time around. Pederson’s 2021 showing didn’t exactly send his free-agent stock soaring, but it was still an improvement over a woeful .190/.285/.397 showing from that 2020 season. A multi-year deal seems possible, but with a fairly deep crop of corner outfielders available in free agency, he might settle for a second consecutive one-year pact.
This is an amazing image of Joc
Badaass!
I’m a little surprised he turned it down. I guess it makes sense though. He will probably make more than $7.5 million next season. He really shouldn’t though. He was great for a couple spurts this season but pretty bad overall. $7.5 million seems just about right for Joc. No harm in seeing what’s out there though. He is the least likely candidate of all the Braves trade deadline pickups to be retained by the team. This is probably good for the Braves. Now he’s not blocking them from signing Duvall, Rosario or Soler. I love Joc in the playoffs but I don’t trust him over a full 162-game season. He also made the Braves a ton of money this season. Thousands and thousands of people every game were paying the Braves stadium prices to buy fake plastic pearl necklaces. The Braves probably paid less than 10 ¢ents for each one of those necklaces and I know they got at least 5 bucks for each one they sold. That was all thanks to Joc. He didn’t even get a royalty for it.
Joc saw less playing time after the other three were brought in. I’m sure he’s been talking to AA, and I imagine he declined the option because the Braves were going to if he didn’t.
yep, he was bench hitter most of the time.
Joc I will be surprised if he gets more than 1 year contract and if he does I bet its club option 2nd year.
I liked what Joc did when he first came to Atl. Post season beast, WS flop. I think he’s Peder’ed out
How could I select any other photo once I saw that in our image provider’s database? Haha
It would be really nice if the desktop/browser version showed the pictures.
It’s perfect Steve. Nice work.
That’s a large part of the problem with Peterson. He’s all affect. He’s grown heavy and slower, can’t hit except for a bomb once in a while, but his died-blond Mohawk combined with pearls, a cigar, and a cap on backwards conceal his mediocrity. The White Sox we’re lucky he turned them down last year, and I’m hoping that the team will avoid him entirely this off season.
Not to the American Lung Association or for parents trying to keep their kids off drugs.
Lighten up, Francis.
You just made the list Hulka
Cigars are not drugs.
Nicotine is a drug.
Even less so than Starbucks or Mt. Dew. Sugar and caffeine is a dangerous combination
I’m assuming your statement was said tongue in cheek. It was a victory cigar lit after winning the World Series. I know that’s obvious to most, if not all, but I feel it needs to be stated for those that don’t understand sports, or life, for that matter.
The Braves opening day OF (assuming Acuna still on the IL and Ozuna suspended) would be Pache, Heredia, Arcia. Very likely they offer Duvall arbitration. But AA has a lot of work to do to build an OF. AND needs to sign Freddie Freeman to an extension ASAP!
Rosario too?
Braves are expecting Acuna to be ready to start the season. He said he’s progressing nicely. As of a week or 2 ago he said he was “at 70%.” He has a few more months to gain that last 30%. You never know for sure but I’m expecting him to be fine by opening day if not earlier.
I thought they interviewed him during the playoffs and he said he is targeting may/June? Either way I’d expect him to miss some time for sure.
Acuña said May, but that the doctors would decide when.
If that winds up being the opening OF, the Braves are in big trouble. Need to at least bring two of Duvall, Rosario, & Soler back. I’m not buying the “If they sign Freddie, they can’t afford anyone else.” I think LM is surely seeing the extra $$ success brings so they might be inclined to loosen up a little more.
Big trouble? That’s not going to be the OF. SF has 80% of their SPs as free agents, so are we to assume they re-sign none of them and field prospects behind Webb? There’s time, money, AA and now the credibility of a championship for free agents to want to play in ATL, not even mentioning those Magic City wings.
That would be horrible! A guarantee for 3rd or 4th place!
Duvall is still under team control. So he’s locked in.
Soler gets an offer. Rosario is to expensive. Pache in CF.
Duvall isn’t a lock, he could be nontendered. But I agree, he’ll most likely be back with at least one of the Rosario/Soler/Pederson trio beside him.
You could also make the case that he could warrant an even better contract than the offer he fielded by MIA last year, considering he showed well in CF, was NL RBI king hitting well wRISP and put up the usual power numbers despite the usual low averages (AVG/OBP). Not something everyone would want to court, but it fit just fine with ATL for a limited time.
He won’t be non-tendered. Even if they don’t come to an agreement, they’ll keep him for his arbitration salary, estimated at 9-10M
Back to the Dodgers
Joc provided the first jolt that resuscitated the Braves, and was the adrenaline pump that kept them going in the playoffs. We’ll be forever grateful. Good luck, Joc!
@bham. I agree I appreciate what Joc did as well. I see him as least likely to be back though.
Good luck Joc and see you at the trade deadline again!
Kinda surprised he would turn down $10MM. Idk if he will get that much signing elsewhere. I know his playing time would probably be limited in Atlanta so I’m assuming that’s why he declined it.
He only needs $7.5M to break even…
I wouldn’t be surprised if he doesn’t get that. He had big moments but was otherwise a pretty mediocre player the past couple of years.
I could easily see him getting only $5 million.
Or even less. Kevin Pillar had similar numbers, better defensively and pulled in just over 1/3 of what Joc got paid. There’s alternative options.
He would never resign with the Dodgers! he was Star quality with a big HR year. They then limited him to being a ham and egger platoon player. Cost him millions!
I can’t see Joc being back with the Braves, and whatever happens he’ll always be remembered as part of the 2021 World Series Atlanta Braves champions. I wish him nothing but the best wherever he ends up.
I need a better understanding of why a player would reject their part of the mutual option. My first thought is they would do it assuming they can get a better deal elsewhere, but I doubt he can, so seems like a bit of a risky move right? I guess to break even he just needs to find a 1 year 4.5 mil deal? So I guess he can prob find a bit of a better deal… is there any other reason why??
I would assume he kinda knew the Braves were going to turn down their end of the mutual option, so it really didn’t matter what decision he made.
Yea, I can see that, but if ur the player you can’t assume the Braves will do that… unless they told him they would and gave him the chance to save face? I agree Braves shouldn’t resign/exercise that option on him for the 7m figure
He probably already has a deal in place with Alanta so is just collecting his buy out, I wouldn’t be shocked if he signs a deal with Alanta within a week.
See, I doubt he has a deal in with Atlanta unless it’s for a smaller deal. A.) he wasn’t that good, B.) if my option is true, doesn’t make sense for him to decline what would be more money. Now, if by some outrageous point, the Braves feel he was good enough to sign for a multiple year deal worth more money, I guess this makes sense. Idk. I wouldn’t resign him honestly. He made pockets of dents when he was in the lineup, otherwise he was ice cold. If he wants to be a bench bat, then being a brave makes a lot of sense for him.
Bravesfan;
He wants a multi year deal. By declining his mutual option he gets paid and a chance to go out and get maybe a 2-3 year and maybe more playing time. He gets to test the market; his first free agency wasn’t that great of a trip with teams struggling with money.
Had he accepted the deal he would be stuck with Atlanta with no real avenue for playing time. Acuna is going play ; Duvall is going play and if Ozuna doesn’t get suspended for a long time he is going play.
He gets to pick his future and some team is going over pay for 3-4 years of him because of his winning history. I think it’s a smart move.
7,500,000 million is the mark and that is not a lot of money in today’s game
Yea I can see that. looking for a multi year…. So long as the net net is over 4.5 (plus his buyout) he comes out better. Didn’t think of the years adding more value for him, even if it’s just a 2 year deal
Ozuna still has to be suspended by MLB. He’s not “going play” next year.
There are worse platoon/4th outfield options out there. He’ll get a contract, probably something like 1 year, $5 million.
He’s only 29. He’ll want a multi-year deal.
then… 2 years 16 million, seems fine to me.
That is true he will probably end up making a load of money with a west coast team… but with how the reds are unloading payroll I could see him going there
Sign for playing time, get traded mid season, win world series, rinse, repeat. He hasn’t improved his value and he’s a year older. Going to get a deal similar to the last one.
Agreed. Joc has his moments, but for the most part he’s just about average. Can’t see any team getting excited over the possibility of signing him. Max offer would be 2/20, but I don’t honestly see a team out there with that much of a need for what he brings to the table.
Fun fact: Duvall & Peterson were picked 4 slots apart in the 11th round !
Ozuna will probably be suspended, and Acuna will be delayed. The Braves likely need two OFs and a DH. IMO, Duvall and Rosario will be re-signed. Who will be the third?
Bhambrave;
The Braves have 2 outfielders at triple A Drew Waters and Christian Pache that they have to do something with. They have to either put like Waters into a trade package and move him or give him his shot at the majors.
I think a lot depends on what Freeman does if he signs else where than Atlanta probably trades for a first baseman and then it depends on what Ozuna gets suspension wise. If Freeman really only cared about being a Braves he would accept the qualifying offer and be back for another year at least
Rosario and Soler both going be looking for multi years deals as there value never been the higher than they are right now. I suspect that some team over pays for both of them
Waters isn’t ready for the majors yet. He really struggled in ‘21. Thinking that Freddie would take a QO would be foolish. Hoping they re-sign him. If not, they’ll go shopping. I’m expecting Pache to get another chance in ST. I think the Braves really like Rosario and his LH bat, and will re-sign him. Assuming Pache takes over CF and they re-sign Duvall, I can see Rosario, Pache and Duvall in the OF. Rosario moves to DH when Acuna comes back.
Agree, except that when Acuña gets back, Duvall and Rosario platoon in LF. We need a full-time DH, Soler would be nice there.
Either Pederson has played himself into a fifth outfielder or the Dodgers were masterful at hiding his flaws. He was a consistent 2-3 WAR player until 2019, and a 0 WAR player ever since. I realize WAR isn’t the be all and end all, but a downward career glide path starting at age 27 isn’t optimal.
His current profile projects a pudgy, poor fielding pinch hitter who swings from his heals. It’s too bad, he looked like a player not long ago. Maybe he turns it around.
My opinion Joc gets a good deal multi years as he has a imagine about him that some team will over pay for. He is a club house and fan favorite. Would not surprise me at all to see him get 3 years – 30 million
3/30M is crazy. But I could see a team give him 2/15 with club options for a 3rd and 4th year at 5M to 7M with buy-outs.
@lefe. I remember watching the playoffs over Halloween and players being interviewed what candy they enjoyed most as a kid when trick or treating. Jocs response “anything king sized”. Lol
Growing up in Palo Alto, Pederson knew which neighborhoods had the best probability for king sized treats.
That was foolish unless he dislikes living in GA. No one will offer him 10 million.
I could see 2/16 plus an option.
They have to pay him a $2.5M buyout, so he only needs to make $7.5M this next year to break even, not $10M.
He has enough upside that he can probably at least get a 1 year deal with an option buyout for a second year that will guarantee him $7.5M. This also gives him the opportunity to get something that guarantees 2 years even if the AAV is lower.
7 million if he goes to Texas Seattle or Florida. GA has about a 6% state income tax. 8 million if he goes back to CA as he would be looking at about 13%. Some of that balances out as you pay where the game is played, so really Florida makes the most sense as you have the least amount of trips to CA.
cannot see him earning $10M per year
The name of the game with baseball is to sell tickets and sell merchandise Joc Pederson is a fan favorite. I have watched him since he was a rookie on the dodgers in fact he is the only player I actually have a jersey ofand I am not a real
Dodger fan.
Joc Pederson would excite a fan base with tickets sales; his great attitude and the way he is. Imagine a team with struggling attendance overpaying for Joc and than get lots of ticket sales and merchandise sales.
I am a Braves fan since Dale Murphy and look how the fans are electrified now with Jorge Soler who batted around .200; limited defense skills and hit less than 30 home runs and yet we have fans that want him back instead of Duvall who had much better overall numbers.
So I could easily see how a team in the future could get excited by Joc Pederson and over pay.
With ‘over pay’ being the operative term…
Like the Marlins? Maybe 3/27 or 4/32
I don’t see Jeter paying a guy like Joc just to sell jerseys.
Although as a Brave he hit .269BA .358OBP .524SLG .882OPS with 14HR and 33RBI in exactly less than 100 AB’s as opposed to with the Royals., plus hitting .300 in a World Series, and we all saw what he can do.
Kevin Seitzer is one hell of a coach.
I have hard time believing he does better as a free agent.. atleast not by average per year as his option
After a quick look through team rosters, there are at least 20 of 30 teams who could use what Joc brings. A left hand hitter with pop vs. RHP and a decent corner OF and by all accounts a great guy in the clubhouse. Coming with a World Series pedigree, I’m sure there is some GM out there that will offer 3 yrs/21mil or more. Three quick guesses-Blue Jays, Tigers, Phillies.
I agree with you 100%. He is a name you know
He may be this years poster child for thinking more of themselves than the market does. He’s a mediocre player who rose to the occasion..
Stormintazz; I live in California and been to many dodgers games Joc is something special with the way he deals with the fans.
He also has the ability to come up huge in pressure situations. I was in Los Angeles 2017 when he hit the opening day grand slam.
Sometimes teams pay for what a player used to be or a fantasy of what they could be.
He is a mediocre player maybe but has the ability to perform in the biggest moments something that’s a lot of super stars never do
Again, it’s a business. The players are expected to do this for the sake of other players and for agencies.
Any choice based on sentiments or emotion would be considered weak. It’s the right thing to do
Anybody who signs him is getting hot and cold running Joc.
I wouldn’t mind SD rolling the dice on him. They have a hole in their outfield and really don’t have the payroll flexibility to go after higher end OF and Joc should be in a reasonable price range on a short term deal.
Worst case scenario him and Wil Myers just end up being a solid platoon.
We could try him at 1b.
I feel like this must be a joke, but it’s so hard to tell these days.
Correct
now the angels can finally get their man
Yeah, no.
The trade that never was with the Dodgers was lamented by Angels fans, but Pederson showed why he is a platoon player, Stripling showed he isn’t reliable as a SP for an entire season, and Rengifo showed he wasn’t ready for MLB.
On the other hand, Pederson and Stripling are gone from the Dodgers, Rengifo is still with the Angels, and he *may* be trusted with SS, or at least utility infield status.
It’s fun to speculate on what we all think he’ll make. Number 1 – it’s not our money and owners are often unpredictable. Number 2 – his agent knows more than any of us. No way he advises him to decline the option if there wasn’t a better situation on the horizon. Number 3 – regardless of what any of us thinks seems about right in terms of a contract, the market will determine that – as well as the timing of when it happens.
Because agents never lead players down the wrong path in search of a bigger payday for themselves?
Phillies? Joc Pederson or Andrew McCutchen?!
Hopefully, a hard pass on both.
Wherever he goes, the teams always win and make the playoffs.
Joc Peterson has swagger and charisma that rubs off on his teammates’
and the fan base.
Some team looking to “take the next” step will pay the man.
Brewers?1 Padres?! Mariners?! Wnite Sox?! Phillies?! Angels?! Blue Jays?!
Declining an option doesn’t necessarily mean he won’t still be with the Braves
True. He might sign for more years at a lower AAV.
That’s alot of pearls to leave on the table.
Mistake on his part. Don’t see him getting more than 1 year and he will be lucky to get 10m. Platoon player. Average defensive player.
Joc opted out so he can interview for the Mets GM job.
I’d rather see Rosario and/or Soler back in Atlanta
Makes sense as a Mets OF
Joc is a bum