As a lifelong baseball player and supporter of the Detroit Tigers, Paul Anthony Pavliscak appreciates that baseball season doesn’t really end after the last out of the World Series. The last few years have brought about insanely active offseasons with big trades and even bigger signings. Now that it finally looks like Carlos Correa has found a home with the Minnesota Twins, Paul Anthony Pavliscak will breakdown the biggest signings of the MLB offseason thus far.
Trea Turner
The offseason started with a bang on December 5th when the reigning National League Champion Phillies inked an 11-year, $300 million contract with star shortstop, Trea Turner. The deal not only reunites Turner with Bryce Harper, who he teamed with in Washington, D.C., but it also came with a no-trade clause. While some speculate that this deal could hurt the Phillies down the road, the team is looking to win right now and Turner certainly helps them do just that.
Aaron Judge
Paul Anthony Pavliscak of Rochester swears he could hear the sigh of relief all the way from the Bronx on December 7th when Aaron Judge agreed to a historic nine-year $360 million contract to stay in New York. There was plenty of talks that Judge would be joining the San Francisco Giants – it was even reported by some trusted journalists – but in the end, Judge decided to stick with the Yankees. After hitting 62 home runs and driving in 131 runs in total, there’s no doubt that Aaron Judge was this year’s most coveted free agent. The Yankees could have locked him in at a much lower price prior to this offseason, but Judge bet on himself and cashed in this offseason.
Judge answered baseball’s biggest offseason question Wednesday morning, agreeing to a nine-year, $360 million contract to remain with the New York Yankees, sources confirmed to ESPN.
Wilson Contreras
Paul Anthony Pavliscak is going to need some time to adjust to a new catcher behind the plate for the St. Louis Cardinals. With the historic career of Yadier Molina coming to a close, the Cardinals decided to make a big splash when they agreed to a five-year $87.5 million contract with a former division rival, Wilson Contreras. As one of the premier catchers in baseball, Contreras will continue the tradition of the Cardinals having one of the most reliable catchers in the game.
Xander Bogaerts
The past few offseasons have proven that the Padres are serious about winning the NL West and giving real competition to the Dodgers for years to come. Reaching the NLCS as a wildcard this year, the Padres were unsatisfied. They are looking to go all-in again with the signing of former Red Sox star Xander Bogaerts to an 11-year, $280 million deal. Paul Anthony Pavliscak believes this is too steep of a price tag for Bogaerts, but owners willing to spend this type of money are changing what a typical contract looks like forever.
