Did They or Did They Not? The 7 Year, $147 Million Dollar Question

So unless you live under a rock (or have gone on a sabbatical from social media), you probably saw the report last week that Kansas City offered Eric Hosmer a seven-year, $147 million dollar contract:

But did they? Did the Royals really offer that deal?

So I figured we would sort this out real quick, for those that are confused. Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star is saying that was not the deal offered to Hosmer by Kansas City (which is not to say they haven’t offered a deal, just not that one), while Bob Nightengale’s report is saying they did, according to his source. So who is this mystery source?

Since Mellinger is obviously more informed on this topic (I would have to believe there is no way his sources are not tied to the Royals organization is some manner), I would tend to lean toward him. To me, the answer is right there in his first paragraph:

The Royals remain interested in signing Eric Hosmer but have not offered a contract worth $147 million over seven years, as stated in a report almost certainly pushed by people close to Hosmer in an attempt to kickstart action in a historically slow baseball offseason.

It is very possible that someone within the inner circle of Hosmer’s management (and do remember his agent is Scott Boras) has floated this number out there to push for a bigger deal. In fact, there have been rumors that Boras has been seeking an eight or even nine-year deal for the star first baseman. The only report that appears to have some accuracy is the offer from San Diego:

 

According to a USA Today report, the Royals have offered Hosmer a seven-year, $147 million deal to remain in Kansas City, while the Padres’ bid is worth $140 million.

People with knowledge of San Diego’s pursuit on Wednesday contradicted that report. The Padres’ offer is lower than $140 million, according to sources who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of negotiations. The exact amount proposed is unknown, though it is well above $100 million.

So the exact dollar amount offered appears to be the bone of contention here…but are the years?

When reading both the article from Nightengale and the one from Mellinger, it does appear that the length of the deal being offered from Kansas City (7 years) is accurate. In fact, that appears to be the one aspect of these reports that everyone can agree on:

I don’t know about you, but if the Royals are offering Hosmer a deal of seven years, I feel that is a giant mistake. Personally, I wouldn’t offer any player a deal of that length unless their last name was Trout, Harper or Machado. Now, there could always be a provision in the contract where Hosmer could opt out after season three or four, but even then you are tying up a position and the payroll for a number of years. In fact, it does appear that the big trade that went down the other day was a payroll move:

In fact, Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star echoes that sentiment:

For the Royals, the move represented a cost-cutting maneuver while signaling the impending rebuild. They dumped the final $9 million on Soria’s three-year, $25 million contract by sending the reliever to Chicago, picking up his $1 million buyout for 2019 in the process. To make the deal work, they attached a valuable asset in Alexander and acquired two prospects who will help fill a hollowed-out farm system.

The savings on Soria could offer the Royals flexibility to further pursue free agent Eric Hosmer. Yet the club may need to make additional reductions, Moore said. The club is hoping to pare its payroll down to close to the $105 million range. It entered Thursday with obligations of more than $115 million, including possible arbitration cases. That reality — and the desire to gain assets for the future — spurred team officials into action.

So even if the Royals aren’t offering $147 million for Eric Hosmer, they are still looking to offer him a boatload of money for his services.

Whether you are for the Royals re-signing Hosmer or not (and I am definitely in the not category) it appears Kansas City is going to at least put forth the effort to make it happen. It’s obvious a rebuild is a lock for the future of the Royals and it will be interesting to see if Hosmer actually wants to be a part of it. On the surface, it kind of looks as if he could be questioning such a move. Major league players already have a short career span and one could understand why they wouldn’t want to be tied down to a rebuilding franchise during the prime of their playing days. These are the issues that Hosmer has to juggle and decide which is more important. For the sake of the future and the ability of this organization to return to contending baseball, let’s hope Eric decides that winning is of higher value than sentimentality.