Kansas City Royals Sign Bobby Witt Jr. To A $288 Million Contract
The Kansas City Royals are at it again. After uncharacteristically making numerous off-season moves, they have secured their – and their best player’s – future, signing Bobby Witt, Jr. to an 11/$288.7 million contract. Make no mistake, the Royals have come to play.
As previously reported by Forbes.com, Kansas City has already spent $47 million this off-season to add Garrett Hampson, Michael Wacha, Seth Lugo, Will Smith, Chris Stratton, and Hunter Renfroe. Since Lugo’s contract (worth $35.5 million) was the only one that extended beyond two years, all of the other agreements were made with an eye toward the present. The Royals are also looking ahead as they signed Witt through the 2034 season, with an option to extend deal until 2037.
As always, the details are what make or break these kinds of transactions. The contract’s basic parameters include opt-outs after years seven, eight, nine, and ten as well as a signing bonus of $7.777 million, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The Royals have a $89 million three-year option if Witt stays in and makes it through Year 11 without opting out at any of those points. With players continuing to play well into their thirties and baseball finances seemingly continually on the rise, the club’s ability to sign their shortstop (third baseman by then?) for the 36–38 seasons at less than $30 million apiece may prove to be a bridge too far or a good deal. The key is that the group will receive
The pre-arbitration guarantee of $288 million is surpassed only by the 14/$340 million deal that Fernando Tatís, Jr. inked with the Padres in 2021. Witt will make around $2 million more each season than Tatís, while having a lower guaranteed salary. Even while the contract is not quite as extravagant as Julio Rodriguez’s multi-year contract with the Mariners, it is nonetheless advantageous for the player and the team. And perhaps even more crucially, to their followers The Royals are currently attempting to secure public funding for their new ballpark in Jackson County, and showing a willingness to spend money to put a competitive team on the field is one way to raise civic pride, making the hundreds of millions of taxpayer money go down a little easier.
Royals General Manager J.J. Picollo allowed the club the greatest amount of flexibility when negotiating the deal. Due to the backload in his deal, Witt will only make $148 million (or around $21 million annually) for the first seven years. The Royals would have received public support for their new ballpark and seven years of their franchise player at a price well below market if Witt opts out at that point. Furthermore, $35 million a year for Bobby Witt, Jr. is still a good deal if Witt decides to opt in.
