Cain deal ups ante in pitcher contracts
The Cincinnati Reds ruined the Los Angeles Dodgers’ plans to sign AllStar first baseman Joey Votto in free agency, and the San Francisco Giants assured they’ll be hanging on to at least one of their aces.
Votto agreed to a 10-year, $225 million extension Monday that will keep him in Cincinnati through 2023, a person familiar with the talks but not authorized to discuss them publicly told USA TODAY Sports. Earlier Monday, right-hander Matt Cain signed a five-year, $112.5 million extension with the Giants.
Votto received the largest contract given to a player not eligible for free agency, the fourth largest in Major League Baseball history. Cain merely became the richest right-handed pitcher in baseball history.
The deals sent shock waves throughout the majors, knowing there are huge repercussions ahead.
“There will be an impact, I’m sure,” Brewers general manager Doug Melvin told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Any signing impacts other people who haven’t signed.”
This is why two pitchers celebrating Monday right along with Cain were Cole Hamels of the Philadelphia Phillies and Zack Greinke of the Milwaukee Brewers. They are eligible for free agency after the season.
“The economics of the game is starting to change what they’re paying elite players,” said veteran agent John Boggs, who represents Hamels. “It’s indicative of what an impact player can be compensated with.”
If Cain is worth $126.5 million over six years — including a $21 million vesting option in 2018 — with his new contract superseding his old one, what is Hamels, an elite lefthander, worth on the open market?
Cain might be one of the premier right-handed pitchers in the National League, but he’s 69-73 with a 3.35 ERA pitching in cavernous AT&T Park and the pitcher-friendly National League West.
Hamels is one of the game’s finest left-handed pitchers and is 74-54 with a 3.39 ERA, pitching in a bandbox called Citizens Bank Park.
The Phillies, who were hoping to sign Hamels to a four-year deal worth about $80 million, are further than ever from signing a contract extension now. If he is not signed by the season’s conclusion, the Phillies might be battling the likes of the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs for his services.
The ultimate free agent pitcher should be on the open market in two years: Cain’s teammate, two-time Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum. He is already earning $40 million over the next two years and rejected an extension of more than $100 million last winter.