Extended

One contract extension I hope works, but wonder about.  The other I wish hadn’t happened.  Both, in a way, concern the White Sox.

 

The Sox signed outfielder Eloy Jimenez to a six-year, $43 million deal; with two team options, it could reach $78 million over eight years.  This fits a pattern with the Sox front office, to throw relatively large piles of cash at young players, who get far more money they would while waiting for free agency to kick in, even if the length of the contract means delaying free agency.

 

I wonder, though, what happens if Jimenez proves to be just as good as the Sox think he will be, generating 100-plus RBI seasons right from the get-go.  Four or five seasons down the line, with stats to rival Bryce Harper and Mike Trout (assuming Jimenez doesn’t eclipse them), then what?  Will Jimenez feel the team took advantage of him?  Will he demand a trade?  We’ll see.

Meanwhile, the Red Sox signed ex-White Sox starter Chris Sale to a five-year, $145 million extension.  I was hoping Sale would return to his old team next season as a free agent.  Sale and Jimenez—what a pair they would’ve been on the South Side.  Oh, well.