NEW YORK — The most prolific hitter in the Majors last season, a homegrown talent featuring defensive versatility and freakish bat-to-ball skills, is set to remain in Flushing for the foreseeable future.
The Mets and Jeff McNeil have agreed to a four-year contract extension that will keep the 2022 NL batting champion in-house through at least 2026, the team announced on Tuesday. Terms were not disclosed, but multiple sources with knowledge of the contract told MLB.com that the contract is worth $50 million. The deal also includes a 2027 club option that could increase the total value to $63.75 million.
“We are thrilled for Jeff and his family,” Mets owner Steve Cohen said in a statement. “It feels like he hasn’t stopped hitting since he lined a single in his first at-bat at Citi Field five years ago. We are especially proud that Jeff worked his way through our organization over the last decade to become a homegrown star and that he has chosen to extend our partnership.”
It is a financial windfall for McNeil following one of the finest seasons of his career, which saw him hit .326 to win the franchise’s first batting title in 11 years. The new contract buys out McNeil’s final two arbitration seasons while guaranteeing the Mets cost certainty for one of their marquee offensive pieces.
McNeil, who will turn 31 in April, is a career .307 hitter over five seasons with the club. He is slated to be the Mets’ starting second baseman this season and has announced his intention to play for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.
Upon embarking upon one of the most lavish spending sprees in Major League history in December, the Mets left themselves with few remaining agenda items outside potential contract extensions for two of their core hitters, McNeil and Pete Alonso. (Multiple sources declined comment when asked if McNeil’s deal could precede a similar one for Alonso.) To complete a contract with McNeil, the team guaranteed him more money than he would have received over the next two seasons through the arbitration process, while removing the potential stress that McNeil might have faced entering free agency for the first time at age 32.
In that regard the deal makes sense for both sides. McNeil sacrificed some potential future earnings for a significant raise now, while the Mets locked up the reigning MLB batting champion for an average of $12.5 million per season — a relative pittance, considering how well established McNeil is as an…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Mets News