The day we have all been waiting for has finally come. Mike Trout got his extension. All your fears of Trout bolting for greener pastures four years from now can be set aside… for an additional three year.
Confirmed #Angels are close to a 6-year deal with Mike Trout for about $140M.
— Jeff Fletcher (@JeffFletcherOCR) March 29, 2014
The exact figure is actually $144.5 million. That’s is. No options. No opt-outs. No nothing. Trout just gets his three arbitration years covered and his first three years of free agency bought out. That sets him up to become a free agent at age 29, setting him up to make… let me see… carry the two… all the money. Every last cent.
For Trout, the motivation to sign this deal is obvious. This deal sets him for life and puts him in position to get a second massive contract that puts this one to shame. His agent should be lauded for getting the Angels to agree to just a six-year deal.
This may seem like a team-friendly deal money-wise for the Angels seeing how guys like Kershaw and Cabrera signed for over $200 million, but his distance from free agency skews things. In fact, he is going to be very well compensated each year.
Source: Mike Trout will be the highest compensated player per service time each year of the deal. #Angels
— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) March 29, 2014
Without knowing the exact structure of the deal, we can take that to mean that he will be making more than $32 million per year during his free agency years, given that it is the current high watermark. So, don’t go weeping for him taking a supposed discount.
As for the Angels, they just have to be happy to lock Trout up. They’d obviously rather have signed him for much longer, but if he wasn’t interested, there isn’t much they can do. They really just could not afford to let him even get within shouting distance of free agency, especially with how old their roster is getting and how much big money they still have on their books. Four years from now. Anaheim may not look like a great place to stay long-term. This deal gives them a few years more to get their house in order so that they have the privilege of giving him a ton of money yet again.
Those are all long-term concerns now though. For now, just celebrate that you get to watch Trout play under the Halo for seven more years.
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