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Biggest MLB contracts in history: How Manny Machado’s reported deal ranks all-time
20
Feb
Feb
Biggest MLB contracts in history: How Manny Machado’s reported deal ranks all-time
The Manny Machado free agency tour has reached its long-awaited conclusion with the prized infielder reportedly agreeing to a decade-long deal with the San Diego Padres.
In landing the former Baltimore Orioles and Los Angeles Dodgers slugger, not only have the Padres brought clarity to a slow-dragging MLB market, boosted pressure on teams interested in Bryce Harper and infused their lineup with long-term star power, but they’ve also made financial history.
While Machado’s reported 10-year, $300 million contract doesn’t quite eclipse the infamous 2014 Giancarlo Stanton deal in terms of total money, it instantly becomes one of the largest in baseball, not to mention all of American professional sports. Here’s how it stacks up against the biggest all-time deals in MLB history, with numbers from Baseball Prospectus:
PLAYER TEAM CONTRACT LENGTH CONTRACT VALUE AVERAGE/YEAR
Giancarlo Stanton
| PLAYER | TEAM | CONTRACT LENGTH | CONTRACT VALUE | AVERAGE/YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giancarlo Stanton | Miami Marlins | 13 years | $325 million | $25 million |
| Manny Machado | San Diego Padres | 10 years | $300 million | $30 million |
| Alex Rodriguez | New York Yankees | 10 years | $275 million | $27.5 million |
| Alex Rodriguez | Texas Rangers | 10 years | $252 million | $25.2 million |
| Miguel Cabrera | Detroit Tigers | 8 years | $248 million | $31 million |
| Albert Pujols | Los Angeles Angels | 10 years | $240 million | $24 million |
| Robinson Cano | Seattle Mariners | 10 years | $240 million | $24 million |
| Joey Votto | Cincinnati Reds | 10 years | $225 million | $22.5 million |
| David Price | Boston Red Sox | 7 years | $217 million | $31 million |
| Clayton Kershaw | Los Angeles Dodgers | 7 years | $215 million | $30.5 million |
If you’re looking just at average money per year, Machado’s deal still lands in the top five. Here’s a look at the top 10 current MLB contracts in terms of average salary per season:
- SP Zack Greinke, Arizona Diamondbacks: $34.4 million
- SP David Price, Boston Red Sox: $31 million
- SP Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers: $31 million
- 1B Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers: $31 million
- SS Manny Machado, San Diego Padres: $30 million
- SP Max Scherzer, Washington Nationals: $30 million
- CF Yoenis Cespedes, New York Mets: $27.5 million
- 3B Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies: $26 million
- SP Jon Lester, Chicago Cubs: $25.8 million
- SP Justin Verlander, Houston Astros: $25.7 million
Beyond baseball, in terms of total money, Machado’s contract clocks in as the third largest in all of sports, ranking behind those of only Stanton and boxer Canelo Álvarez ($365 million) among current deals.
If you dive a little deeper, the Padres’ $300 million payout for Machado doesn’t look quite as massive. (If, somehow, you can picture a $300 million contract as anything but massive.) As FanGraphs’ Craig Edwards calculated this offseason, converting old contracts to today’s dollars would indicate that Machado’s deal is actually the 10th largest in baseball history rather than the second largest. Alex Rodriguez’s 2001 contract would be worth a whopping $592 million in 2019 dollars.
Next up, Bryce Harper.
