Mauer, who will turn 24 this April, became the first American League catcher to win the batting title in 2006, leading the majors with a .347 batting average with 13 home runs and 84 RBIs. With three years of arbitration remaining, a four-year deal would bind Mauer past his first season of free-agent eligibility.
This is a particularly smart move for Minnesota, considering they've only hooked MVP first baseman, Justin Morneau for one-year thus far, with other imperative contracts to examine within the upcoming seasons.
Before Minnesota's new stadium is erected in 2010, two-time Cy Young winner and strike-out master Johan Santana will be needing a raise (2008) along with gold glove center fielder Torii Hunter, whose 2007 contract was picked up for $12 million to avoid free agency. The team will need to lock up some of their talent before their key players are swept away by larger contracts than the Twins are able to afford.
[St. Paul Pioneer Press]
4 comments:
It's tough to be a small-market team; the Twins have some tough decisions coming up. Here's hoping they are at least half-right in choosing who to keep and let go.
One would like to believe they will give Mauer the Mall of the Americas before they let him go. I'd have liked to see Morneau signed to a long term deal as well, but I'll settle for one year while they work out something.
The Twins need to sign him long term - STAT.
No doubt about that. With Mauer locked down through arbitration, hopefully they can get on with giving players like Morneau, Johan and eventually Liriano long-term deals.
Post a Comment