By Jesús Alaín Fernández /@ JesusLCA2017
In the ABC of baseball the shortstop plays a major role. The standard player for the position passed from the born defender (Ozzie smith as a role model) to a player who could hit as much of his bat as his glove can produce (with the house brand set by Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez).
Players in position “6” are traditionally the most sought after by teams, and for some years now, they have been putting into their bank accounts many of the most generous checks in all of baseball.
It is enough to remember the recent mega-contracts of Francisco Lindor (341 million for 10 seasons) and Fernando Tatis Jr (340 for 14 seasons), not to touch Wander Franco and his very early signing with the Tampa Rays. Likewise, if we look at the salaries to be earned in 2022 from the most onerous players on the left of the middle school at the beginning of the current free agency, we will understand a little about where things are going, or better, what to expect from the current free agency.
Francisco Lindor led the list with 34.1 million for 2022, Xander Bogaerts with 20 million, Trea Turner who will go to arbitration and could receive (according to SPOCTRAC) 18.5 million, Brandon Crawford with 16 and Didi Gregorius, after a season down, with 15.25.
Names like Corey Seager, Javi baez, Trevor Story, and Carlos Correa have been putting sauce on the 2021/2022 negotiation period. Some compromised their future almost when the gong of the employers’ stoppage sounded and others were waiting for the hostilities to resume to look for a new home.
The first big blow was delivered by the former Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop and almost complete owner of the 2020 postseason that saw the Dodgers take the crown. Corey Seager won the sixth-largest contract in baseball history after signing with Texas for 325 million and 10 seasons.
Puerto Rican Javi Baez was another who saved nothing for later and committed to the Detroit Tigers for 140 million and six seasons.
Of those left behind, Carlos Correa is the star. The also Puerto Rican will undoubtedly be the most sought after by suitors who seek to round out their lineup. After a season of .279 with an OPS of .850, 26 homers with 104 runs scored and 92 RBIs, the former Houston Astros player will be able to aspire to, seen from his own words, “a great contract that other older players have achieved. ”.
SPOCTRAC puts him signing for about 26.6 million per season and between 7 and 10 years.
Rangers and Tigres have closed the door on his arrival and he made it difficult to get to New York himself, but it has a huge market. Teams with a chance to sign him also weigh the qualifying offer he turned down and the implications for draft spots.
Trevor Story is sand from another bag. The player hails from the Colorado Rockies and Denver has traditionally been considered a hitter’s paradise. However, in 2021 he hit less (11) than half of all full-return hits at home (24) and many players who have left Coors Field (Nolan Arenado the most recent) have proven their offensive mettle elsewhere. . His 13.6 WAR since 2018 is the second-best in all of the majors since 2018 at the position.
Even though the 29-year-old is below average on many defensive metrics, his contract (presumably coveted by the Philies, Astros, Yankees) will have high digits and enough time to count them all.
Finally ours, José Iglesias. Without wishing to establish an obviously uneven comparison, Candelita put numbers that you just have to look at from the right angle. His xBA (expected batting average) is 10th among all shortstop in the majors in the completed season. Names and men like Brandon Crawford and Willy Adames (nominated for the 2021 Silver Bat), Francisco Lindor, Dansby Swnason, Trevor Story and Javi Baez just to name a few fell behind the Cuban.
His fielding average, even though this is no longer the stat that commands defense, was .982. And what surely no metric can evaluate is the spectacle of seeing him play in his position.
José will be 32 years old before play ball in 2022 and even though there are no rumors that link him to any geographical area, the Cuban must have a job in 2022.
Anyway, shortstop players are like the highlight of free agency. When the force contained by this employer stoppage is unleashed, we will be seeing what wallets are capable of when it comes to shortstop.
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