The Houston Astros and Yordan Alvarez have reportedly agreed to a 6 year, $115 million deal
The Houston Astros and Yordan Alvarez have agreed to terms on a 6 year, $115 million contract extension, per reports. The extension covers the period from 2023-28, and buys out three free agent years at $26 million per year, per Jeff Passan.
Alvarez, who turns 25 next month, has been one of the best hitters in baseball since debuting in 2019, when he was named the American League Rookie of the Year. Alvarez has a career .287/.370/.576 slash line, and is slashing .272/.367/.574 this year.
Alvarez is not yet arbitration eligible, and is making $764,600 in 2022. Per Bob Nightengale, Alvarez gets a $5 million signing bonus, salaries of $7M, $10M and $15M from 2023-25, and then $26 million per year for 2026-28.
This feels like a pretty reasonable deal for both sides. Alvarez has, in his career, made less than $5 million, so getting a chunk of change up front is pretty good for him. The arbitration year salaries seem reasonable, and $26 million per year for his free agent years, when he wouldn’t be eligible for free agency until after 2025, seems like a number where Alvarez isn’t leaving much on the table.
Dan Szymborski, a couple of weeks ago, suggested 7 years, $128 million as an extension figure for Alvarez. This is a little better deal than that for Alvarez, who will hit the market again after his age 31 season. Alvarez has always been primarily a DH, and guys who are bat-only players from an early age sometimes don’t age terrificly well. They also don’t tend to get the type of home run deals that more versatile players get, even if they hit the market in their 20s, as Alvarez would have done.