- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,130,650
- Reaction score
- 59
You must be registered for see images attach
Colt Emerson is all smiles after signing a $95 million contract with the Seattle Mariners before making his MLB debut. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Last week the Seattle Mariners signed yet-to-be-a-rookie Colt Emerson to an eight-year, $95 million contract. For a few days, it was the largest deal ever given to a player who has yet to accrue a day of MLB service time (Jackson Chourio signed an eight-year, $82 million deal with the Brewers in 2023; and then Konnor Griffin signed a nine-year, $140 million deal moments before he made his MLB debut). Emerson’s deal also includes a $25 million club option for 2034. And, as these types of contracts often do, there are escalators built in for MVPs and Silver Slugger awards, as well as All-Star appearances. Shockingly, the deal has a full no trade clause.
Emerson was ranked fourth on MLB’s list of Top-50 prospects, and could be Seattle’s shortstop of the future. FanGraphs has him as a 55 future value prospect (on the 20-80 scale), with a 60 hit tool, 50/55 raw power, and 45/50 for fielding. That is the one question for the youngster: can he play shortstop every day at the big league level? Well, the Mariners are going to wait to find out, as they are keeping him in Triple-A Tacoma even after the ink on the new contract is dry.
Last season, playing at three minor league levels, Emerson slashed .285/.383/.458 with 16 home runs. The projection systems show roughly the same for 2026, as he refines his skills waiting for his chance to play in Seattle.
The Mariners currently rank 23rd in FanGraphs positional depth chart at shortstop, with J.P. Crawford getting the majority of the reps, with a -6.4 fielding score by their metrics. Leo Rivas is better defensively, but he cannot hit (career slash line of .235/.355/.306). So, with just a little seasoning, the door is wide open for Emerson to make the jump and prove to the fans in the Pacific Northwest that he is worth the money.
Seattle is taking a nearly nine-figure risk on the 20-year-old, a considerably bigger risk than the Astros did in 2014 when they gave Jon Singleton $10 million over five years, which went up in flames.
The Phillies gave Scott Kingery a six-year, $24 million contract before his rookie season, and he gave them -0.7 fWAR in his first year, and then just 2.1 fWAR the following, which was as good as it would get. The Covid-shortened 2020 season wasn’t productive, and he played in only 16 more games for Philadelphia after that.
Seattle signed Emerson despite being plagued by memories of the Evan White contract. In 2019, they signed the first baseman to the same deal as Kingery, with escalators up to $55 million. He won a Gold Glove as a rookie, but didn’t hit a lick (67 WRC+, with 100 as average). In 2021, that number was 24. Hip surgery ended that season early, and he hasn’t played in the big leagues since.
Now it is up to Emerson to perform on the farm and then perform on the biggest stage. If he does, he will exorcise the demons of previous deals gone bad, and provide the Mariners with a solid bat in the middle of what is already a solid lineup.
This article was originally published on Forbes.com
Continue reading...
