4 Free Agents Who Will Land $100M+ Contracts
On Sunday we weighed in with Tier 1 free agents—those who'll command contracts in excess of $300M. We also checked out the Tier 2 class—players who will likely land contracts north of $200M but less than $300M.
Today, we look at the Top 4 free agents who should be in line for deals over $100M, but not quite to the $200M level.
Jacob deGrom (opt-out)
After a year of injury woes, deGrom finally proved he could stay healthy, for at least half a season. And he certainly showed plenty of flashes of what made him the greatest pitcher in the game. It's all he needed to convince himself that opting out to try to secure a huge free agent deal is the way to go.
He is going into his age 35 season, however, and the most likely scenario is a contract similar to Max Scherzer's from a year ago: shorter term with record-high AAV. Mad Max got 3 years, $130M. deGrom could go a little higher, maybe even with a 4th year, but still not pass the $200M mark.
Carlos Rodon (opt-out)
With injury concerns coming out of the 2021 season, Rodon was limited to a 2-year, $44M contract last winter with the San Francisco Giants, with a player opt-out. That bet on himself has paid off large for Rodon. He delivered his second consecutive All-Star season with a 2.88 ERA, a 1.03 WHIP, and a whopping 237 strikeouts. And even more important: he remained healthy, making a full 31 starts.
He is going into his age-30 season and has likely earned himself a contract similar to the ones that the other top pitchers on the market got last offseason (e.g. Robbie Ray, Kevin Gausman): 4-5 years, $100-$115M.
Edwin Diaz
For a closer going into his age-29 season, at the top of his game, he may be the first to crack the $100M mark. It may seem a little rich, but he has now proven to be indispensable for the New York Mets, and they might just break the bank for him.
Dansby Swanson
The Atlanta Braves have not been shy in the past year or two on handing out big contracts to keep the team together (Freddie Freeman would be the exception). Swanson has proven beyond a doubt this season that he's joined the upper echelon of superstar shortstops, and whether it's with the Braves (his preference) or another team, he should win himself a deal that at least surpasses what Trevor Story and Javier Baez got last winter (6-years, $140M), quite likely by a fair bit.
Photo: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
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