Longoria gets new $100 million deal, but why?
http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/20...ion-with-rays/
The Rays are frequently celebrate as one of the smarter front offices in baseball, and their early long term deal for Longoria (pretty much immediately after his call-up) is often cited as one of the more team-friendly deals in baseball for a "star" player. They had him under team control through 2016 with team options that topped out at $11.5 million per year. Low enough to be a significant value for a franchise player, but not so low that said player would feel "cheated", especially if he misses significant injury time from an assortment of nagging injuries (and a mysterious foot problem).
But then they go ahead and extend him anyways until age 37, under no externally obvious pressure to do so. Why? The sad part is that Longoria just turned 27, and even with all his problems, this new deal seems more likely to pay off than Mauer's will. But that doesn't mean it's a "good" deal, or a necessary one.
Thoughts?