Beautiful Day
U2
🎶
It's a beautiful day
Don't let it get away
It's a beautiful day (Oooh, ooh) 🎶
After a few painful days of waiting both
Andres Gimenez and
Shane Bieber accept contract extensions! BOOM 💥💥
Both are two critical core pieces for us to retain over the next several years and build around. Terms of the deals below:
Andres Gimenez, 6 year extension / $100 M
Gimenez is a 24 year old plus-plus contact, plus speed, plus-plus defender at 2b. Potential to be a future Silver Slugger and Glove Glove award winner. STUD!
Shane Bieber, 5 year extension, $117.5M
Shane already has won one Cy Young award. If he stays healthy like 2022 he has the chance to win another in the next few seasons. Plus stuff, plus-plus control, and the ability to work deep in to games.
With two stars locked up, we switch attention again to the free agent market to fill a few gaps. As the winter months roll on, we keep tabs on two specific players in free agency: Martin Perez and Matt Boyd. Perez had a great 2022 season in Texas, keeps the ball in the park with his sinker, and provides quality pitched innings. Plus he is a lefty who controls the running game. After a mostly lost injury 2022 season Matt Boyd now is a bullpen arm that still has quality stuff.
Perez I envision as an innings-eating SP to spot around #4 in rotation. Boyd would join Sam Hentges as another LH option in the bullpen.
Both of their demands have softened a bit, to the point we make offers. Perez accepts a 2 year, $19 M deal. Year 2 is a team option. Although we have a lot of good arms on the way, want to make sure we have someone on staff to be a quality placeholder until they are ready.
Boyd accepts a 1 year deal for $4.5 M. I prefer to have at least 2 LHP in the pen if at all possible. The plan will be to utilize him in middle innings.
With our off-season moves consisting of trades of players on reasonable deals, and smaller short term deals, we still have around $25 M to spend for the 2023 season, and close to $20 M next. There remains an elite player left on the market, so we will see if we can lure him in to a short term deal. Who is it? Well, guess we will find out together next episode
