The Red Sox announced that they have signed prospect Kristian Campbell to an eight-year contract extension which runs from 2025 to 2032 with club options for 2033 and 2034. It is reportedly a $60MM guarantee which breaks down as follows: Campbell, a Beverly Hills Sports Council client, gets a $2MM signing bonus and a $1MM salary this year. He will then make $2MM, $3MM, $4MM, $6MM, $9MM, $13MM and $16MM in the next seven seasons. The first club option is valued at $19MM and has a $4MM buyout, then the second option is worth $21MM. There are also escalators based on awards voting and All-Star selections. The Sox are buying out two of Campbell’s free agent seasons with the options allowing them to extend their window by two more years after that.
Campbell’s stock has been shooting up for quite a while now. The Sox selected him with the 132nd overall pick in 2023, giving him a signing bonus of just under $500K. He played 22 minor league games just after that signing with a strong .309/.440/.471 line.
His success continued in his first full season. Last year, he vaulted from Single-A to Double-A and Triple-A, hitting a combined .330/.439/.558. That production led to a wRC+ of 180. He drew walks in 14.3% of his plate appearances while only striking out 19.9% of the time. He also stole 24 bases while lining up defensively at second base, third base, shortstop and in the outfield.
That huge season shot him up prospect lists heading into 2025. Each of Baseball America, MLB Pipeline, FanGraphs and Keith Law of The Athletic had Campbell among the top ten prospects in the entire league this winter.
That also got Campbell in line to make the majors this year, with second base eventually emerging as the best path. The outfield is already fairly crowded, with Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu in there now. Roman Anthony will join that group at some point soon. Then there’s Masataka Yoshida, who largely slotted in as the designated hitter last year. But with the Sox going with Alex Bregman at third and Rafael Devers as the DH, there’s no room for Yoshida in there. Bregman could perhaps opt-out after this year but the Sox could have Marcelo Mayer take over that spot, since Trevor Story has shortstop spoken for.
There are lots of moving pieces but Campbell nonetheless got the second base job to start the year. He actually had a fairly tepid spring showing but the club showed faith in him and he has hit .375/.500/.688 in his first five big league contests.
Though he has made his major league debut, this is effectively comparable to pre-debut extensions. As shown in MLBTR’s Contract Tracker, the benchmark for a guy with no service time is Jackson Chourio’s eight-year, $82MM extension from just over a year ago. That topped the previous record, which was $50MM for Luis Robert Jr., a deal that’s a few years in the past. Campbell got past Robert but didn’t quite get to Chourio’s level but that’s fairly understandable. Campbell is turning 23 in June while Chourio was just about to turn 20 years old in March of last year, with that difference giving Chourio some extra earning power.
It’s perhaps not an accident that the club waited until after Opening Day to get this deal done. It was reported last March that players who sign pre-debut extensions, like Chourio, aren’t eligible for the prospect promotion incentive. To discourage service time manipulation, the current collective bargaining agreement put measures in place to encourage teams to carry top prospects on Opening Day rosters. One of those measures is that top prospects who are called up early enough to earn a full service year can earn their clubs an extra draft pick via awards voting.
Campbell came into this year as a consensus top prospect and cracked the Opening Day roster. That means he can earn the Sox an extra pick by winning Rookie of the Year or finishing top three in MVP voting during his pre-arb years. That would have come off the table if this contract were signed prior to the start of the season but is still in play for Boston now that they’ve waited a few days into the campaign.
For Campbell, it’s easy to see why he preferred to lock up this kind of money earlier in his career. As mentioned, he wasn’t a huge name going into the draft. While some players can earn multiple millions on their signing bonuses, Campbell was limited to under $500K. Even though he cracked this year’s Opening Day roster, he wasn’t going to qualify for arbitration until after 2027. This deal allows him to put some life-changing money in the bank ahead of schedule.
Even the top prospects will sometimes struggle in the big leagues and Campbell was a sort of surprise surger last year. If he hits any speed bumps in the coming years, he is financially secure. He is potentially limited himself in the future, though. If the two options are picked up, he won’t hit free agency until he’s going into his age-33 season.
For the Sox, they clearly believe the future is bright and have gained some cost certainty and control over essentially Campbell’s entire prime. Should he continue to thrive on the field in the coming years, he’ll be a relative bargain. Even when he’s making eight-figure salaries in the later years of the deal, that’s still well below what top players get on the open market.
It’s the second significant extension they’ve given out in recent days. They inked left-hander Garrett Crochet to a $170MM deal earlier this week. That was a different animal as Crochet is far closer to free agency and more established as a big leaguer.
Another key difference between the two is that Crochet’s deal doesn’t start until 2026 and therefore doesn’t impact Boston’s competitive balance tax number here in 2025, but the Campbell deal does. RosterResource calculates the club’s CBT number at $249MM, beyond the $241MM base threshold. Back in February, president Sam Kennedy said the club was already over the line and planned to stay there.
Christopher Smith of MassLive first relayed the $60MM guarantee. Julian McWilliams of CBS Sports first reported the option values. Alex Speier of The Boston Globe, reported the full annual breakdown and escalators.
Photos courtesy of Kevin Jairaj and Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Images
Now do Anthony and Mayer.
I’m hoping Mayer can be effective , but the guys been knocked back by injuries almost every year in the minors. I’d want to see him stay healthy and produce at the big league level a little before committing ANYTHING
First trade Devers.
Whoa!! That escalated quickly.
And cheaply…? That AAV is very team friendly.
Considering he more than likely doesn’t turn into Aaron Judge those are very high arbitration numbers.
Are you sure? Sub 30M through the end of his arb years? That seems very attainable.
Your assuming he meets or exceeds expectations without getting injured. It allows him to get paid again while locking in enough money to protect his family and obviously then some. Great deal for both sides.
I agree, but I still don’t think they are ‘very high’ arb numbers.
The highest arbitration salary for a second baseman was $14.2 million and that was Gleyber Torres last year. Now in 4-5 years that will be different. But even still historically 2B are the lowest paid position players.
Good point Rod. Although his main position will be 2B, he can play most anywhere. Not sure if that boosts his cash value, but he’s definitely valuable.
I think the kid is gonna be better than solid. If you squint at him, you can kinda see a little bit of Mookie. Same build, short swing, quick hands.
Campbell is 6’3”, Mookie is 5’9”… what do you mean same build?
Lanky and loosey goosey.
And I watch games on an iPhone 8.
bouy – I see more similarities with Campbell and Xander.
Not just because they are one inch apart, but the personalities are so similar. I called it long ago Campbell would give a nice size discount, just like Xander did with Dombrowski. They are super nice guys, very laid back, and are not about the money …. unlike Mookie who was all about the money (which I don’t hold against him).
You gotta squint
The whole contract is less then what Soto was paid in his arbitration years.
So? That’s 2B vs one of the best OF in the game who immediately produced huge numbers. Soto had also completed 4 seasons by the time he was Campbell’s age. You have to look at 2B salary to compare, not OF. He’s making $18 million more than Semien made through arbitration, It’s just $5 million less than Katel Marte has made so far in his whole career.
Juan Soto is DEFINITELY NOT “one of the BEST OF in the game”. If you’re speaking OFFENSE only,sure. I for one look at players from BOTH offensively AND defensively. In that situation, Juan is nowhere near the best.
You’re delusional and not having a debate in good faith if you don’t consider Soto isn’t one of the best OF in the game. Even taking in account his subpar defense, Soto is still one of the best OF in the game.
I have 765 million reasons to agree with this post.
@Prospective
he plays in the OF this he’s an OF’er.
Lol… Those are Bargain Arb #s. His Arb years start in 2028. You also have to discount for inflation over the next 4 years and the yearly increases in the MLB salary tax levels on the team. When you combine the two the discount in current $ is a MINIMUM of 10% the first year alone. Then it escalates from there.
$60M is Bargain Basement… Then they hold 2 options at what will be an approximate 50% discount to current values.
Again at 2B, that isn’t bargain basement arb numbers. Yes, if you compare him to top earning positions like OF, SS, 3B etc then yes that’s cheap. But not at 2B.
His Arb years are $4M/2028 $6M/2029 $9M/2030 THAT is Cheap. Those are 2025 numbers being Paid 4, 5 & 6 seasons from now. In comparison…
Glayber Torres got $14.2 in 2024 for his 3rd Arb year alone.
We have nothing to base his arbitration years on. You need a season of performance to tell what he might make. 1st year arbitration eligible 2B have averaged $1.39 million over the past 6 seasons. 2nd year arb eligible 2B have averaged $1.84 million per bWAR in their 1st arbitration eligible season over the last 6 seasons. Arbitration is not calculated on WAR, that has just been how it has worked out.
Exactly. Great deal! Some people just like to argue.
@Strange
You can’t say it’s a great deal when. he’s 5 games into his career.
He doesn’t need to when you take into account the inflation rate of contracts for budding stars. He’s not a budding star yet. Still too raw. But even if he turns out to just be solid, those dollars will probably roughly align with inflated contracts for solid players in 4-5 years.
If I told you Soto would get $700-800 million 3-4 years ago, you’d tell me I’m crazy. Not comparing the 2. Simply pointing to the ridiculous inflation rate of contracts and increasing CBA thresholds.
Its a very fair and safe deal for the Red Sox and one that awards Campbell for his early successes and projected future successes.
There hasn’t been “ridiculous inflation” in arbitration salaries awarded. They have been remarkably consistent with what seems a precalculated rise at about 1.5% to 1.7% per year. That could change in the next CBA, but we only have what has already happened to base an educated guess. In any case his arbitration numbers cannot be predicted without first seeing at least a season of performance.
I hope that Campbell is a budding star. He has sure looked good so far.
They bought out more than his arbitration years. In order to do that, you’re going to pay extra on the arbitration years.
This is very simple.
Probably because he has 16 MLB at bats. It’s a gamble in both directions.
Swan – I totally agree!
Great deal by Breslow, this makes me very happy :O)
It’s like the Alex Anthopolous school of team building in application….
Just need to trade for Chris Sale…
Major – Years from now it will make for a good bar trivia question ……. “Who was traded straight-up for Hall of Fame pitcher Chris Sale right before Chris won a Triple Crown and Cy Young?”.
For those who thought Merril’s extension was a bit chintzy…
Might as well…
I wanna get million after 16 at bats too!
Be born with the talent and put in the constant work, and it shall be so
@deepseamonster32- Amen-
you cant even spell right.
* can’t
** Can too **
cant LOL
RussianFemboySportsFan
you cant even spell right.
==============================
Isn’t it spelled r-i-g-h-t?
Wish the Yankees would do this with wells and volpe
That ship has sailed
Not with Wells. He’s only in his second year. Volpe hasn’t shown enough, although there is still a price where it makes sense.
I think the Yankees should for Wells. Volpe has to show he’s an above .300 OBP
They have Mayer for Story. Devers and Casas for Guerrero, ideally, but that’s not happening obviously. Perhaps Devers, some money for his contract and Casas for Pasquatino and Perez. Idk, not too many 1B or Catchers possibly available and that’s about all Boston needs, imo. Maybe those guys (and money) to the A’s for Langeliers and Rooker. Rooker can probably play 1B, I’d think.
Not many interested in Casas.
Tristan Casas needs to step up and have a great year. He needs to play a full season and he needs to produce and he needs to do it now.
Maybe a dumb question, but why not groom Devers to play 1B?
&
The price tag is only going up on Volpe and Wells, and the likelihood to retain them shrinks, right?
I was thinking the same thing. I can see him at first, and it may make him happier. I don’t know why, but I think Casas’ days on the Sox are numbered.
And he needs to stop talking so much.
Devers is a statue in the field with the worst range of any infielder. Although he couldn’t be much worse than Guerrero at 1B.
Casas is going to get a year to see if he can put it all together and stay healthy. If he can’t, Devers could very well end up there.
I could see that happening if Casas doesn’t plan out. The Sox would need to replace him anyways so it might as well be Devers.
Because he CAN’T field… Period.
His mobility isn’t getting better.
He’s a DH,…He’s been a DH playing 3rd for years.
They have been Numberd since he refused to negotiate any longer term contract.
This is something he will regret. He gave up financial security at a young age… He called it “Betting on himself”
He could’ve had $$$ early and still been a FA at a young age. If there is NO FA windfall he will only have himself to blame.
Devers days of playing the field are OVER. The only way he plays the field is if he’s traded.
I don’t look at Volpe and think “man, this is a guy we have to get signed before he gets way too expensive”. He’s a very good defender with some pop who still needs to get on base a bit more.
I would argue that the time to extend players is before they reach the next level. Even just one year from now, he could be a 30/30/.275 SS with a good glove. And I think the floor is very high.
As a RS fan, I hope the NYY do not extend him.
Let’s goooooo
A couple of very team-friendly deals today. Congrats to the guys locking in their generational wealth though.
These deals have a pretty big zero risk, especially for positions that rely on pure athleticism.
Zero-risk, as in Campbell and Merrill fall off the table? There’s always a chance, I guess, but I’d bet against it.
What does “a pretty big zero risk” even mean??
@coop
He wanted to sound smart.
Were Halfway There!!!!
We’re livin’ on a prayer…
Ooooh. Ooooh.
They took third from Devers and broke his heart, 15K’s to start the season, he wont ever be back to normal on that team.
Now you can say that’s unprofessional and that he will get over it because as Cora said, “We’re in the winning business” but losing your position is difficult to cope with especially when you are still in your prime. He’s certainly not locked in because he is emotionally hurt losing third base.
Be a pro, you’re making 30M you could say, but those aspects of baseball and those roots go way back to the playground. Devers has been at third his whole life Id imagine. Nobody could take that from him because he was the best player on the diamond his entire life. Cora took it from him, wounded his heart. Might be a 60 Day injury.
You could say he’s being a baby, but its a human heart. It will be interesting to see how he rebounds because that certainly is why he is off to a slow start.
If he took it serious, he would have shed all that weight and convert some to muscle. He knew he had a target on his back regarding his defense. When he cashes his $30M checks, does he have a heart? maybe…maybe not
You can say what you want about it, Boston is on the hook for nine more seasons at 30M per. You’re talking about a guy who has hit .278/.344/.508 for his career, you let your new puppy come in and piss on his locker.
He hit fine last season. Did he get fatter? I dont know. I do know that I’m right about his slow start. I do know thats its a huge contract. Boston has the prospects to plug it up, but it really is somewhat of a blunder and that is managements mistake not Rafael Devers, you should have known how he felt about playing third before you extended him. Interesting situation, Id say Devers gets it back on track but he might not. He might harbor resentment all season while watching Bregman play third from the bench, he might never be the same.
miller – Cora repeatedly stated to Devers and the public throughout the offseason that “Raffy is our third baseman” and that there were no plans to replace him. It was either extremely cruel or extremely dumb to deceive Devers like that.
And here’s another thing that has Red Sox Nation angry, Cora stating that even when Bregman has a day off or gets injured Raffy still won’t play 3B.
So picture this ….. Bregman gets the day off, the Red Sox are facing a RHP, and Cora is gonna have Romy (who absolutely sucks against RHP) play 3B with Devers at DH, instead of Devers at 3B and Yoshida at DH? How is that “putting the best team on the field”? Just more double-talkin’ jive from Cora and Company.
As for Bregman, so far he’s been a mess. Making errors, getting picked off first base, .490 OPS, 0-for-8 with RISP and 2-for-11 with MOB. He better figure it out because Red Sox Nation isn’t gonna cut him any slack considering his history.
You know how I feel about it. I feel like there will be a divide in the team, get the impression Trevor Story is a problem too and that he is on board with Bregman, and that upsets Devers who should be your guy. Now its a bad situation. The team was in such a good position too. Who is going take Bregman’s 40M per, what a bad contract. A Casas trade could smooth it out, move Trevor Story to the bench and bring up Mayer. That might right the ship a little. But I liked Casas a lot. Its a real jam up now. Devers going to have to settle in at DH and I think he’ll always resent it because he did improve a little at third last season.
Im upset about it and Im a White Sox fan.
miller – I just don’t like when any player is done dirty, I want to be proud of my team both on and off the field.
Story and Bregman are similar personalities, Story would have been the team leader but now Cora has pushed Bregman into that role.
I do think Story is due for a good year, last night may be the start of one of his typical hot streaks.
It would be a nightmare scenario if Bregman has a bad year and doesn’t opt out, not only because of the money but because he would block Mayer from playing.
The two Sox teams play each other 7 times over the next 18 days ….. including morning baseball on Patriot’s Day ;O)
That will be sweet. White Sox are looking good this year, Garrett Crochet could save both the White Sox and the Red Sox.
miller – If you could stop by occasionally with any updates on how Teel and Montgomery are doing, Red Sox Nation would enjoy hearing about them.
Teel is a character, he does his pre-game dry swings without anything on. LOL
I keep up on all the teams for the most part, Im a White Sox fan because I grew up here in Chicago, I was a big A’s fan too but they did my favorite player a little dirty, now he is on the Dodgers, and I cant stand the Dodgers.
Fever – we get you’re sore at how Raffy was handled.
BUT as management you MUST make those public statements. It’s how you maintain leverage in negotiations, trade or otherwise.
I’m not a member of RSN who is upset Devers won’t play if bregman is hurt or has an off day. I say BURN all of Devers gloves, stick a bracelet on him that gives a shock if he ever picks one back up LOL.
As for the RISP and MOB issues… that’s pretty much been team wide in the early going, not just Bregman.
Fever – both Teel and Meidroth are off to fast starts in AAA Charlotte, Meidroth has 2 HRs/2SBs and is hitting .294/.478, Teel has 2HRs/1SB and is hitting .316/.409, that’s nice.
GaSox – Soooo much I could write, but I don’t have the time and I know it wouldn’t matter anyway. LOL
I’m not the one who brought it up again, soxshortstop did. I’m merely defending a Red Sox star who has done a great deal for my team over the years and has never behaved inappropriately in the past like other Sox stars (Ortiz, Pedro, etc) have.
Management didn’t NEED to make any public statements.
Players get traded or moved to another position all the time by other teams, you don’t see those other teams making a point to publicly state right before “He’s our guy, he’s not getting moved or traded”.
Regardless, as I said they should have talked to Devers PRIVATELY about the situation. If they had, he wouldn’t have been blindsided by reporters in ST as he was. This is not just my opinion, this has been expressed widespread throughout the baseball community. Not sure why you’ve flipped over to defending management when they clearly did Devers dirty, but I see a lot of flipping around here so it doesn’t surprise me. LOL
Campbell, Duran and Abreu have been damn good with RISP and MOB but let’s just ignore them to make the new guy with the $120M contract (before deferrals) look better ;O)
Bottom line, anyone who knows me knows I’m fiercely loyal and supportive of those who have been wronged, whether it be baseball players or friends or complete strangers. I’m not going to apologize for qualities that good people have appreciated about me.
Red Sox fans have a reputation because of a small percentage who constantly crap on their team’s best players, it’s been that way since at least Clemens and Boggs and Nomar and Pedro. And you know what? I’ve defended all those guys too.
As always I respect your opinion, but I think we are too different to ever agree on anything related to Devers or Yoshida among others.
And BTW if only you had heard and seen the reaction of the Texas crowds every time Bregman stepped to the plate ….. and yet I stood and cheered for him every time, because he’s on my team and I support him because I want what’s best for my team. Personal feelings will never be a factor for me.
Fever, I don’t believe that for one minute. I personally feel he said that to keep the media from becoming a distraction going forward. Once he made that statement all the noise surrounding Devers playing 3rd base ended.
ct – Not sure what you don’t believe? That he didn’t tell Devers privately he would be the 3B?
bwmiller79
I do know that I’m right about his slow start.
======================
Perhaps you aren’t right. Given his 1.467 OPS this month, it is more likely that his slow start is due to taking the winter off and limited ABs due to his shoulder issues.
bwmiller79
Who is going take Bregman’s 40M per, what a bad contract.
=========================
It’s a $30M AAV hit, and there is about a 50/50 chance he opts out.
I didnt look at the details of the contract closely. Devers is raking, but I still contend that it will be an issue.
sox – No, he did NOT “know” he had a target on his back regarding his defense.
Once again let’s summarize:
1) He’s played 11,198 innings and all were at 3B
2) Just two years ago he was given a massive 3B-size extension which obviously meant management had zero concerns about his defense
3) He was promised he’d continue to play 3B for the majority of the extension
4) He’s had 4 POBO’s and 3 managers during his MLB career, not once was he told he could lose his 3B position if he didn’t improve
5) He was never allowed to try any other position, not even 1B
It’s pretty obvious by the comments here that some have a deep hatred of the man, which says a lot more about them than Devers. Anyone with even a shred of common sense would understand the Red Sox have mismanaged him for many years, and THAT is why we are where we are now.
Fpg, are you really trying to say that Devers is flat out stupid and didn’t know he was the worst defensive 3B in the game? Of course he knew that if the Red Sox could find a great defensive and offensive 3B that he would be moving off 3B. If he didn’t realize that you can be sure his agent did. Also, when did Cora say that Devers would absolutely be the 3B? Fact is he hemmed and hawed about it all offseason, never once giving a definitive answer even before we signed Bregman.
Baseball – No offense but you lose people when you say things like “worst defensive 3B in the game”.
Even if by “game” you mean MLB, from 2018-2024 there have been 492 players who have played 3B in the majors. Many of those 492 didn’t last very long, didn’t play many innings because they weren’t good enough.
Now if you wrote something like “Of all the MLB players who have played at least 7,500 innings at third base, he’s the worst defensively” THEN I would agree with you …. but there’s only 3 others who have played that many innings.
Devers was the worst defensive 3B in MLB. Only one that seems to be lost is you. Everone else knew that. Your semantics don’t change the fact that Devers is not stupid enough not to realize that he was a terrible 3B.
Baseball – That’s like saying Bobby Dalbec is the worst baseball player in the world without acknowledging he had to be doing something right just to get to the majors.
Translated for you, Devers obviously wasn’t the worst 3B in MLB because no MLB team would put him there for 7,767 innings AND give him a $300M contract extension if he was the worst 3B in MLB. And not that it’s needed, but the numbers back it up too.
No point in discussing this further since you’re one of those who ignores facts and logic and always refuses to admit when you’re wrong.
But hey, Bregman’s boneheaded throw today now puts him on pace for 41 errors this season. So according to you that makes him the worst 3B in the world right now ;O)
Devers did do something right. He hit. He was the worst defensive 3B in MLB. Why do you keep trying to say that he wasn’t?
Baseball – I think everyone has moved on from the subject.
Bregman had yet another error tonight, his 3rd in just 12 games. He’s on pace for 41 errors this season, far more than Devers ever had. That’s a big concern, one of many.
Another concern, Crochet sucked tonight. Despite pitching with an extra day of rest in pitcher-favorable weather conditions, he threw a career-high 107 pitches despite not making it out of the 6th inning. Part of the issue I think is the crappy catching, he shook off Narvaez numerous times. But still, for what Crochet is getting paid he damn well better start pitching better.
Just like the experts at MLB Network said, the Jays look really good this year. Their starting pitchers are great, and with Springer hitting like he did in Houston they’ve got four really dangerous hitters.
You might want to give this take more than 19 ABs. He also missed 75% of Spring Training and is coming back from injuries to both shoulders.
Don’t overreact to the dreaded Small Sample Size.
That’s my take and Im sticking to it, its going to be an issue all season.
Can you give me your best guess for his stat line at the end of the season? I want to save this and laugh later.
This year has rookie year?
.263 average, 12 homers, whatever RBI.., Decent defense, and a hint that he’s going to get even better.
He goes 20-100 in April with 35K’s and the Red Sox move him out of the lineup in favor of Anthony and Yoshida in May, maybe he only gets 400 ABs this season.
He shouldnt have any issue putting up .250/.310/.450 – around league average across the board.
Got it, you have him out of the lineup by May. This won’t take long at all to prove you wrong. I’ll see you in May!
bwmiller79
He shouldnt have any issue putting up .250/.310/.450 – around league average across the board.
=========================
League average OPS was .711 last year.
League average 2b was .684.
A .760 would actually be pretty good.
“You might want to give this take more than 19 ABs. He also missed 75% of Spring Training and is coming back from injuries to both shoulders.”
≈==========================================I have to agree with this as I have watched every game. And the announcers have even stated that Devers has a good eye and plate discipline and was just reacting slow to the pitches. They commented on how he would foul off pitches he would normally crush or just flat out would be slow to react to the pitches. Which indicates is timing is off which makes since knowing he missed most of spring training nursing his shoulders.
Just to keep you up to date, in April his batting line has been:
AB 13/R 3/H 5/RBI 2/BB 3/K 1
So that is a .384/.500/.461/.961 slash line.
Yup, I’m sure he’ll be out of the lineup by May like you predicted…
Currently up to .264/.404/.421/.825, for the record. Damn, Devers is making you look like an idiot a lot faster than I even expected!
If Devers is a so called Professional, then he needs to suck it up and get after it, without the cry baby sulking routine. You got your big bucks and the boss says tighten up! Lose some weight, get that swing to the competitive level!
That’s a funny one, you are talking about a guy who has averaged .280/.350/.525 for the last four seasons. Wasnt he fat last year? He can hit. His swing is fine. His fat arse isnt that much fatter. He doesnt need to lose any weight. His focus is shattered.
Pablo Sandoval was a more than serviceable third baseman while being the fattest guy in MLB. Also, I hope you’re never on the receiving end of a deceptive boss.
I think he’s going to be fine bwmiller.
He’s a grown man and I’m sure his life hasn’t been all birthday parties and pony rides.
He’s undoubtedly faced a lot more adversity than “changing positions” lol.
The Yankees need a third baseman. They will trade you G Stanton and his elbows and take that contract off your hands. They’ll be happy with his bad defense hitting in front of Judge and demolishing homers for the next eight seasons because he aint going to be hitting in Boston again. You think its easy to get over, it isnt.
he needs to emotionally mature if he can’t get over that he’s clearly a lesser-defensive third baseman
He is a 28 year old kid, this will help him in that department, but he wont play for the Red Sox again. Your shortsighted GM, if he can see the phone on his desk, should be on the phone with the Yankees. If you send them Mayer, they’ll take that contract off your hands and you can save yourself from the cancer you created.
Should of been Trevor Story out of town, he is a complete bum. Should have been Devers at third, Bregman at second, Yoshida at DH and Campbell in the OF. But you let Cora screw that up.
By the way, thanks for Teel and Montgomery. Enjoy Garrett Crochet and his high leg kick.
28 years old is a kid?
Should of been Devers at 3B, Mayer at SS, Campbell at 2B, Casas at 1B. Rafaella, Abreu and Anthony in the OF, Teel at C with Yoshida at DH. Buehler, Houck, Bello, Crawford and Giolito with Newcomb, Fitts, Priester plugging up any holes. Have Sandoval in ’26. Could of spent that Bregman dough on a starter and a veteran, Lance Lynn and Brandon Drury would have been a good fit. Probably would have saved 20M this season going that route. You’d still have Meidroth, Montgomery and Gonzalez for a trade, throw in Fitts or Priester that would have been enough to land you a starter from the Padres at the trade deadline if you were in a position to win, assuming the Padres are going to trade one or both of their aces. They might actually win this year but there would have been a starter out there.
I like Crochet, he is a good pitcher but that leg kick might not age well, he is a big guy, that hip might go, that knee might get soft.
Bregman was a bad choice. The sooner Trevor Story sees the bench the better. Interesting saga in Boston now though, because that Devers contract is expensive for nine more seasons.
Terrible take. Just awful, for so many reasons. The leg kick not aging well is hilarious though. Thanks for the laugh.
Im a White Sox fan, I liked Crochet but when I first saw him pitch, I said no way is that motion with that leg kick going to be repeatable, I thought he would prove to be a little wild, he proved me wrong with a 209K/33BB ratio. Big guy, big arms big legs big body, I like that in a pitcher but I still think that leg kick isnt going to age well. Hip is heavily involved, a lot coming down on his plant leg, time will tell. Had a great start tonight.
I dont like rooting against people and Im not rooting against, just my opinion on his mechanics.
You had me at you second word – NOT!! Absolutely horrible take, both in content and composition.
I like Eury Perez, his mechanics are smooth. From the left side, I like Carlos Rodon, he has perfect mechanics. Crochet not so much. But I watched a lot of his highlights, he somehow slows that leg down and plants with his toe pointed at home everytime, somehow he kicks that huge leg of his high like a showgirl and plants it just so. Its a weird delivery that obviously is working out well, great start yesterday. As far as Crochet aging well, I believe my take is accurate, a lot of moving parts in that delivery from the windup, Crochet is a big man, that leg kick might be an issue later in his career. His stretch delivery is rather quiet though, which could benefit him. Devers picked up a couple of hits but Id still be concerned about that situation.
Take a few minutes to reevaluate. Garrett Crochet’s mechanics post TJS are nothing short of elite. Perhaps the best in the league. His lower half is so incredibly efficient and his power is effortless. Also, specifically take notes of his hip clearing and just how soft his plant leg actually touches the ground. It’s textbook technique. Elite on so many levels. Have another look.
Or, it could be because he was told not to do any baseball activities all winter, and didn’t get into spring training games until the very end
Devers was at .960 with 12 errors last season. Machado was at .970 with 7 errors last season.
Range factor and runs saved metrics probably dont show Devers in a positive light but he is capable of holding down the position. If anything he was improving defensively.
Devers had the range of an ottoman.
His ’24 season wasnt that bad but like I said Id bet the Yankees would gladly take his offense and sacrifice a little defense to keep him happy. If your going to pay a guy 30M for the next decade season, you had better do everything it takes to keep him happy. If you dont keep him happy you risk your significant long term investment, that’s bad business, not winning business.
Trevor Story couldnt hit a watermelon.
Trevor story is a very good hitter. Not sure what you’re thinking today Miller?
Of course he hits a HR after my post on how terrible he is. I think he’s a dog with fleas at the plate though.
But what about diversity, equity and inclusion? Are you trying to suggest the Red Sox chose merit? 😉
Nice story bwmiller, watch baseball much?
Devers had 14 at bats in spring training because of injured shoulders. His struggles have nothing to do with emotions and everything to do with not seeing enough pitching in game situations.
Your comments are so consistently out of left field and ill-informed that I have to wonder if you are just trolling to get a response?
No, I believe what I said is accurate. He hasnt DH’d much, playing the field is an important part of keeping your head in the game, if he needs that to stay locked in, then his numbers might slide. Maybe he adjusts to it, maybe he don’t. Maybe he holds a grudge about being moved off third, maybe he doesn’t. I cant say but it shouldnt even have been an issue because you signed Devers to play 3B. Why would you sign a 310M dollar DH unless he is going 50/50 like Ohtani?
I think Devers likes to hit too much to stay angry about it for long, so it probably wont fester but it could, it could come back in those big moments and what was once a homer smashed over the fence is now a strikeout because Devers didnt like that call on 1-1, a little anger creeps in, he starts to remember the anger from having his position taken from him, his focus is off a bit now as he is picturing Bregman with his girlfriend (3B) and he swings and misses strike three. Needed that run, Boston loses.
Do you also believe in the Easter Bunny and Tooth Fair?
I guess there ain’t no room for Vaughn Grissom
.312 Minors Average but little pop
This won’t undo the Mookie Betts and Devers blunders.
How about the Babe Ruth blunder? Does this take care of that?
Put away your worn out history books and look forward. You keep looking backwards you’re gonna run into something and get hurt.
Or worse, you’ll turn into Clarence Thomas & the Spankees are Your Daddies !!!
I miss Mookie like everyone else but the fact is to get David Price and his over payment out of the house it had to happen. If the boss says get under the limit, then you better damn sight get under it!
Bad – Not true, there were several other options besides trading Mookie. For instance if they had packaged one of Xander, JDM, Devers, Eovaldi or prospects with Price I’m sure they could have found a trade partner.
It wasn’t about dumping Price’s contract, it was about the Sox not being willing to give Mookie what he was worth. They negotiated with him before trading him, if he had accepted then obviously he wouldn’t have been traded.
Don’t forget about these all-time corkers.
-Carl Crawford
-Pablo Sandoval
-Hanley Ramirez
-Rusney Castillo
$400M that translated to 1.8 WAR. Marone!
Bart, who could forget? Yikes.
I said give him acuna’s deal 100mil with 2 options
Thats exactly what he got
What a day for elite young talent!
Sox made the right move
I hope he got a key-man clause of Breslow as PBO.
Excited for none of the Red Sox deals to work out and the fans cry poor and for Henry’s head again. The cycle repeats.
Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face. This is straight out of the Rick Hahn playbook. Just be prepared for it to go t*ts up.
Funny how teams are trying this out. I suspect it messes with their priorities. Guys without deals have to work under the uncertainty of arbitration. These deals mean they don’t have to worry about the nastiness of the owners and they don’t tighten up.
Nice move, Boston!
Meanwhile at friendly confines, Ricketts is already scrounging couch money for the offseason when he “tries” to sign Tucker lol
Thanks Gwynning. I purposely read this thread so I could compare the RS responses to the Padre responses re Merrill. In SD, they declared it a national holiday with BBQs and fireworks galore.
The RS fans, not so very much.
Past that, congratulations on Merrill. Hopefully this works out for both teams.
This is what smart teams do… sign a 22yr old to a modest deal, then be done with him at the age of 30-31
You mean like Pedro, Nomar, Jason Bay, Johnny Damon, Jacoby Ellsbury, those guys?
Not sure why you would reference Pedro (traded to BOS, signed big extension), Bay (traded to BOS), and Damon (BOS FA signing) when the topic is extending homegrown guys very early in their careers. Unless you’re suggesting that MON, PIT, and KC should have locked those guys down early on?
We let those guys walk when they wanted big money and in their 30s.
I guess I was referencing the second half of his comment rather than the first, which is probably the point. Good catch.
Gary – Nomar didn’t walk, he was traded because he was dealing with an Achilles injury that, when he was healthy enough to play, hurt his defense.
Yes, it’s true his defensive play had fallen off a cliff, but…,
“This thing fell apart for the same reason these things always fall apart: Money. Nomar’s agent rejected a four-year, $60 million extension from the Red Sox the prior spring.”
He wanted more money so they let him walk essentially. Fortunately, they got something for him in trade, which helped them win the World Series in 04.
If I shouldn’t have included Nomar in my list, I apologize.
Gary – No worries, it’s very possible he would have left after the season anyway ….. very possible.
I’m looking forward to seeing Fitts pitch again today, he’s a favorite of mine.
Rafaela benched again today, Campbell in LF, Duran in CF, Hamilton at 2B …. definitely a better chance of winning with Hamilton in there!
Yes, me too. Been a few day games so I’ve missed them.
I sure hope shuffling Campbell back-and-forth won’t hurt him. But you want to get Hamilton some PT but you definitely don’t bench Campbell so…
Yes on Fitts, pulling for him to make it difficult to send him back down when the time comes.
Gary – I don’t see that possibility of Fitts getting sent down.
Newcomb would go first when Bello or Giolito return, and at some point I wouldn’t be surprised if they either go with a 6-man rotation or demote Walker to the bullpen.
Crochet, Houck, Bello, Giolito, Fitts and maybe Walker with a 6-man.
And no I didn’t forget about Crawford, I think it will be a while for him and when/if he returns there will be some other injury to make room for him.
Yes, all good points. Hey an interesting note, Campbell’s going to start in center today with Duran in left. Interesting.
Gary – Oh wow, thanks for the info. That was a change from earlier on the MLB app.
Hope this isn’t another “Duran is the left fielder and he will never start anywhere else” situation.
I believe it has to do with familiarity with the monster at home or they’d put Campbell in left.
Gary – If so, I disagree with them.
First, the whole purpose of JetBlue Park is to be nearly identical to Fenway’s left field so players can practice playing the wall.
Second, CF is much more challenging than LF in Fenway with the triangle and door and large size.
Gary – Okay I just got the deets, KC is more comfortable in CF and hadn’t played in LF in the minors. Cora admitted he screwed up playing him in LF in ST.
I’m cool with the decision now, even though it’s a waste having Duran in LF.
Got ripped off compared to Merrill
Doesn’t Merrill have a year in the majors under his belt?
Can’t blame this kid for signing this contract. As with any young player, you just never know so it’s a great deal for both sides.
Then if he does turn into something he can get paid from age 30 to 35+. That’s when he’ll get his big bag. It’s just how baseball works.
I tell you what, if the Red Sox had waited till next off-season.., and Campbell rakes this year, it’ll be a lot more than 9 for 135.
Its 20 PA to 616 for Merrill. We might call this a premature… you know what on the part of the Red Sucks.
But right now I’m just enjoying that hold onto Devers and trade Betts line. I’m actually watching Red Sucks games now just to watch the pudgy DH whiff!
That’s just a bad reply all around doctor. Can’t say any of it holds any value whatsoever.
No guarantee that he won’t be another Scott Kingery. Should’ve waited a year.
The average salary of an MLB player is now $5 million/year. This isn’t that huge of an investment where even meeting the most modest of expectations would meet its value. I’m just glad they settled on a second baseman. It’s been a hole since Pedroia.
Not a terrible deal in a sense, probably should have waited but they obviously like what they’ve seen so far
but they obviously like what they’ve seen so far
==========================
It’s obviously a small sample, but in the back of my mind, I was thinking they needed his signature before he does any more damage.. Those two doubles last night were classic hitting.
I know it’s early, and I was one of the fans that thought he should start in AAA, but he’s been even better than advertised.
Congratulations to Kristian on signing a life-changing deal. Let’s hope it works out well for both sides.
I do feel for Devers. He need to go 10 for his next 21 just to get his average to .250…let’s how bad of a start he’s had. I truly believe he gets out of his slump tonight and not only gets his first hit, but his first HR too. He loves hitting in Camden Yards.
I honestly think part of Devers struggles are like the 2019 rotation. The poor guy just didn’t have a ST.
Then you’re trying to get up to speed using only 3 or 4 ABs in an entire game. That’s tough on anyone, forget the drama and distractions. It’s not bad pitch recognition. It’s not chasing. A huge part of his issue is just not having his timing down.
In spring training, he would’ve been pulled by the 5th inning, getting only 1-2 ABs. Don’t see this as being a downgrade from spring training.
Styme, spring training is quite a bit more than 2 at bats, 3 times a week.
Devers missed all of the standard workouts to help ramp up a player for the regular season. It’s not the at bats in the games.
Its definitely the AB in game situations. He had 14 instead of the typical 50 or more. His timing is off and its noticeable. He will come around.
You forget he missed most of ST nursing his shoulders. So besides that AB’s he was missing time in the cages. I agree with Gary it’s all about timing.
I agree that it’s all about timing and to improve timing in game situations you need to see pitches in games.
It’s a lot of both, but they sure don’t get many at bats so my emphasis wasn’t on that. Plus one guy mentioned they don’t play the whole game, they get two at bats and they’re in the showers.
Spring training is typically 50-55 AB in games. He is starting to get his timing down. 2 hits today.
A+
Can’t see extending him for any cheaper. This is like Albies adjusted for inflation.
Good bet. Not the best or most sure thing but why it cost what it did. Great bet to make. Risk reward ratio is there.
Don’t know why he would want to stay. A leopard doesn’t change his spots. Just because they are “very progressive”
Say what?
SOUPER news for CAMPBELL !!
Is Marcello Mayer still jelly of Kristian Campbell for stealing his roster spot?
I don’t think the jelly ever appeared.
There’s no way they give an often injured, never played AAA, 22- year-old, the starting second base job for the major league team.
He has to show us one healthy season in the minors first does he not?
If you’re here to troll, spell the name right. But more importantly, did you really think they were going to start someone at 2B, that had never played 2B before? And then move him from the left side of the IF to the right side?
This is a very good move for both parties. Couldn’t be happier for the kid. And it shows the other top prospects a lot about the organization’s willingness to invest in home grown talent. Odds that Campbell Anthony and Mayer all live up to their hype are very slim but there’s a lot to be said about the confidence gained with feeling secure about your future with the team that drafted you. Well done RS front office
Hello orioles??! Care to lock up any of your guys? Hello. Anyone home?
I can lose my RS card for this, but extending your guys would be good for baseball.
It’s time to sign Duran to a long term deal. He’s earned it, and he’s getting more expensive with every passing inning.
NOOOOOO !!!!!!
I think I’m one of the few who is adamant about trading Duran now while he’s at his peak.
I think past history has shown with this guy he could be a flash in the pan. He’s had one and a half good years, well great years, lol, And he’s a speed guy and he’s 29 or so?
I say dump him now at the high end for pitching. A nice centerfielder is in demand so the Red Sox should be able to get a nice young pitcher in return plus or minus whatever works out.
Gary: I’ve been with you the whole time regarding Duran. Trade him for young pitching and if they can get a young catcher out of it too.
From a rotisserie perspective, maybe. But from a team perspective, I want to keep everyone together.
This is a good move. Now, somwone please explain to Cora that you pencil him in at 2B everyday and leave him there, let him get comfortable and grow. I don’t want to see him in the OF anymore. If you need someone that bad, let Hamilton play there or call up Anthony.
Certainly bad news for Casas though.
This has made Raffaele redundant and expendable. I don’t think the contract that he has would be a detriment in trade talks, because he’s a serviceable major league player.
In that vain, let’s start piling up players behind Raffaele to get Alcantara.
An impressive rotation for the next three years could be:
Alcantara
Crochet
Houck
Bello
probably W.Abreu gets that role before they ship Rafaela.
Cleveland – Red Sox Nation agrees with you!
Rafaela again had a brutal day today. Sox had 16 hits and he was the only one who went hitless. His OPS – not his BA, his OPS – is now .294
When Anthony is finally called up, the only question should be whether Rafaela becomes a reserve or gets demoted or gets traded. Because they absolutely CANNOT bench or trade Abreu. And to those who claim he will never hit LHP, he’s proving them wrong.
Delusional Fever Pitch Guy thinks he can speak for an entire fan base.
And its yet another stupid move by the Sox. They really are trying to compete with the Mets as the worst run franchise. 16 AB’s… I’m sold!!!!! Don’t even bother responding Sox and Met fans. The history of your teams speaks for you.
you started drinking early today
The history of our team is four rings in 20 years. And you’re using the history of our team against the Sox in a comment? Suspect strategy at best.
Never heard of him
That’s exactly when you sign them. Before everyone else hears of them lol.
Anthony isn’t that stupid and I don’t think Mayer is either that’s a very club friendly deal smh
Anthony plays outfield which is considered a premium position so he would command more. Mayer needs to prove he can stay healthy before the even think about signing him long term. Unless you want Trevor Story 2.0.
Great deal for the team, I thought $100M/8 would have been fair.
Wait – Interesting development, Wong is benched for the second consecutive game today.
Narvaez is fundamentally the better player. Solid behind the plate, more patient, and it isn’t like he strikes out any more often. Narvaez looks like a good #2. Wong might be a good #2, but only when his power shows up.
This and the Crochet look like money well spent! Already paying off big time in the first game for both in which they got PAID!
Dear Red Sox,
OLD guys on overpriced long term deals = bad
YOUNG guys on bargain priced long term deals = good(with the occasional dude who doesn’t quite pan out….)
and in fairness the financial commitment in the guys that don’t pan general aren’t too high.
The only cautionary tales would be guys like Dalbec. He was young. Had power. Did great on the farm. Even put up a good rookie season. If he was extended how would that money look… more than one guy puts up a strong first year.
I think to some degree it would even out over time if you made tons of extensions.
My response to Dalbec example is that he had plenty of warning signings that he wasn’t that guy specifically his horrendous strike out rate among other things and wasn’t bringing plus value with his glove like someone like Rafaela.. There was a reason he wasn’t offered an extension and I suspect those warning signs were why.
I’m happy with ceddane’s deal. Then again, I always supported JBJ the first time around – not the horrible contract bloom re-acquired him on.
I’d potentially be worried on a Casas deal, he kinda rebuffed the team the first time they sniffed around on an extension, and now is more interested of course. 1B markets being what they are – see Alonso et al – I’m more of a pay as you go on him. Not to mention I don’t like the attitude, but, that’s just me being too old fashioned for these days.
Mayer worries me too from a health standpoint. I wanted to see 2 fully healthy years from him – not counting say, resting from a hbp or catching a flu or what have you. So, hopefully they get a year of data this year on him, then partway into next season if things look decent…then talk years and money
As mentioned before, I think they likely were being extra cautious with Mayer and he will be fine.
GA: I wouldn’t necessarily hold Casas’ being lukewarm on contract extensions at first against him. And if his priorities shifted that might end up working out for both parties.
I’m a big Mayer fan and still believe in him but I understand a more cautious approach you’re advocating for.
GASoxFan
The only cautionary tales would be guys like Dalbec.
============================
I wouldn’t compare them. Dalbec was only a marginal top-100, and always had huge K issues. That stuff doesn’t usually improve. And he was still in AA at age 24.
GaSox – Hard to say without an extensive analysis, but I would think more good rookies would flame out. For two reasons:
1) Rookies always have a one-time element of surprise advantage. After a year, the book is out on them and quite often they are unable to make the necessary adjustments.
2) The average career length of an MLB player is 5.6 years. That means after their rookie year, on average they’d have two more good years and then start to decline in Year 4.
Let’s see if that holds true with guys like JRod, who has been fading after a strong rookie year.
If you discount the first two or three weeks of a player’s ML career, things sometimes look very different. As you say, it takes time for the league to adjust to the player (and vice versa).
JRod was better in 2024 than his slash line makes him look. A bit of bad luck mixed in but his game was fundamentally similar to 2023. And this is his age 24 season, a good bet for a breakout.
Older rookies are more likely to have short careers than guys who come up at the age of 20-22.
Dalbec was seen as a 45 prospect. No comparison between him and Campbell. Rafaela is a little closer, with uncertainty surrounding his offensive future, but his game-changing defense lifted him to a 50 grade.
As you say, over time it works out in the team’s favor. There is some risk, but $60M isn’t going to sink the Red Sox even if it somehow turns bad.
This is a bet on the CBA itself. The current agreement expires after 2026, and if the next iteration raises the CBT threshold (projected 15-20% increase based on revenue trends) or expands PPI rewards, Boston’s early mover advantage compounds. They’ve secured Campbell’s prime at a fixed cost while retaining flexibility to exploit future rule changes, all without sacrificing the draft pick upside Chourio’s deal surrendered.
If he’s really that good like everyone says then he’d get double that.. decent signing by the BoSox.
It’s “only” 60 mil but this seems too aggressive. I’m glad he got his money but I think they shouldn’t sign people until they say a good season worth of at bats under their belt. Do they become more expensive, sure… but ball players are so up and down… it’s such a hard game
braves – I think it depends on what the player is willing to accept.
Campbell likely accepted less in part because he hadn’t played in the majors yet. The more team risk, the lower the price.
How about Crochet’s performance directly after signing an extension? What a way to say thank you!
IMHO, it is all about his health. When he is on, he’s really tough.
Casas??? Love that he bet on himself but???
I’d extend him, if he wants, but he is not among my favorites right now. He can hit, but he really hasn’t cut back on the Ks like I was hoping.
Joe, I think he has excessive expectations, and, I dont like his attitude as a ‘me guy’ which he showed coming up and when joining the team. That bodes poorly for any future difficulties and is a red flag to me. Maybe I’m just too old where I respect institutions and traditions too much.
His defense is iffy, and he KS a lot. Use him wilhile youve got him, but, not really a cornerstone for a franchise to me.
might be a generational thing but I never felt Casas was a me guy more that he was quirky and had a personality. I could see why a traditionalist might not like that but at the same time baseball should be fun and could use a bit more personality in my opinion,
that said I did have higher expectations for him but injuries have derailed him a bit. If he turns it around this season I’d consider extending him.
Acell – I think it’s a generational thing on both sides of the equation.
I put Casas into the same bucket as a Puig or Chisholm. The institution and traditions don’t mean much to him, but, more to the point, when he was coming up through the levels there *were* clubhouse issues where they felt he wasn’t respecting traditions and wouldn’t budge on the behavior he wanted to do. Thats where I placed him as a ‘me’ guy. Some teams will put up with ‘Manny being Manny’ behaviors because the output makes it worth the headache… of course, up until even Manny wasn’t worth the headaches lol.
But, yeah, Casas feels to me like he has more that generation-z type mindset with traditions and conformity… then you’ve got an aging gen-x like me, I get it, in our day we *destroyed* the system in some areas… but some things, there’s just a value to the traditions and I feel like the nail that sticks out too far needs to be hammered down.
It could just be the uniform fit, but he doesn’t strike me as a guy in tip-top shape.
GA: These “clubhouse traditions” just like the whole “unwritten rules of baseball” are part of broader issues in baseball. It goes beyond just being antiquated. Just because a guy likes to wear bright colored clothes and fun cleats as was the case with Chisholm doesn’t mean that he doesn’t respect the game and it certainly doesn’t justify that kind of treatment he got from his teammates. In his case and Casas’ their work ethic wasn’t the problem which is why I don’t think Manny is fair comparison. I liked Manny but shoving the traveling secretary and no showing games is unprofessional and that hurt the team in terms of wins and losses. I certainly can’t’ justify that behavior. Wearing Oreo themed cleats or painting your nails doesn’t rise to anywhere close to that level.
Basically bought out 6 years of free agency and added 2 more yrs right
Interesting long-term contract! More than team friendly until option years! Seems like his agent doesn’t have much faith in his future abilities! But it does secure a paycheck in case of a collapse.
In the debate of security vs earning power I think I would always lean security, especially this early.
Even if he never makes another dollar over $60MM he is set for generations.
Solid deal I suppose for a young player. Get that guarantee before some freak injury that could happen, which could derail a promising career. It makes sense even if left on the table a bit. I’d rather have the guarantee vs the risk later.
I don’t think I’ve seen Campbell play. So my question is do you think he’s selling himswlf short “only” agreeing to 60mil guaranteed. This seems like a very team friendly deal for Bahaton
Campbell didn’t bring down a huge signing bonus. He wasn’t always looked at as a stud prospect. He ‘learned’ to be as good as he is as he went. So it’s both sides, he knows how hard he worked, and, he had a shot at more money than he probably ever thought he’d make his whole career when he got drafted.
It’s life changing money even for his grandkids. So, I dontn5hink he would feel he sold himself short, look at guys like Sizemore… things happen and you can lose the ability to keep playing.
On one hand it’s $60 million guaranteed. There’s no guarantee he’ll live up to the hype but on the other hand he exceeds expectations and on the open market those two seasons he could be making Mookie Betts money.
Depends on the individual….if we were talking about me at that age I’d say it was a bad idea bc I would’ve pissed almost every cent away until I was at least 30. I would’ve been able to spend $60 mil real quick. Give me a few extremely exotic cars, a couple trips to Vegas, some real estate and a giraffe or two and I already spent 1/4 of it.