Aaron Judge, Carlos Correa and Trea Turner combined for almost $1 billion in contracts. Xander Bogaerts, Jacob deGrom, Dansby Swanson, Carlos Rodón, Brandon Nimmo and Willson Contreras added up to another billion.
And that’s just nine players. Just one lucrative slice of baseball’s December spending spree.
What a difference a year makes.
It has been an epic holiday season already for several teams and players — a year after Major League Baseball locked out its players in an ugly labor dispute that delayed spring training.
Judge decided to stay with the New York Yankees for baseball’s biggest free agent deal ever, a $360 million, nine-year contract. Correa has a pending $315 million, 12-year agreement to join the New York Mets, and Turner signed a $300 million, 11-year contract with Philadelphia.
Including Thursday’s transactions, big league teams have handed out almost $2.9 billion in finalized contracts to major league free agents this offseason. That dwarfs the winter spending at this point in each of the last five years.
Through Dec. 20, 2021, that number was $1.9 billion. It was $187.4 million in 2020 — when teams were coming off the abbreviated season caused by the coronavirus pandemic — $1.6 billion in 2019, $655.95 million in 2018 and $413.25 million in 2017.
“Whether it’s ownership, whether it’s teams that fell short in the playoffs, teams that did well in the playoffs, teams that are ready to take a step from maybe a three-, four- or five-year rebuild, you look up and there’s few teams that are taking a step back,” Padres general manager A.J. Preller said during baseball’s winter meetings.
“Almost everybody (is) looking to advance forward. And that, along with some really quality players, is why it’s a very aggressive market.”
HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?
The March labor agreement that set industry rules through 2026 is one factor behind the increased spending, but there are several more forces at play.
The labor deal included an expanded playoff format, leading to more TV money for owners, and cleared the way for advertising on uniforms and helmets for the first time.
Under the five-year agreement, the luxury tax threshold rises to $244 million by the final season and tax rates remain unchanged at the initial, second and third thresholds. A new fourth threshold was added — supposedly aimed at Mets owner Steve Cohen — but it looks as if the billionaire views that hefty tax bill more like a nuisance as he pushes his team’s…