The San Francisco Giants have come to an agreement with third baseman Matt Chapman on a new 6 year, $151M contract extension the club announced.
The deal, which will officially kick in beginning in 2025, wipes out the final two years of his current 3 year, $54M contract, but also prevents the veteran infielder from opting out and hitting free agency. According to reports, the pact features no deferred money, and a full no-trade clause which will run through the 2030 MLB campaign.
A four time Gold Glove winner, Chapman is known more for his defensive prowess than his hitting ability. Nevertheless, the 31 year old has held his own at the plate this year hitting .247 with 22 HRs, 90 runs scored, 69 RBIs and 13 SBs on the season.
His 6.0 WAR is the 9th best mark in all of baseball, while his bat speed (98th percentile) and average exit velocity (96th percentile) place him amongst the leagues best.
The contract marks the largest dollar figure the Giants have handed out since Farhan Zaidi took over as president of baseball operations in 2018. Chapman will now earn $25M over each of the next 6 seasons, and will be given a $1M signing bonus in 2025.
It’s also a rarity in baseball for a Scott Boras represented client to sign an in season extension, as historically they’ve almost always tested free agency before putting pen to paper. However, in recent weeks Chapman had hinted that he’d be open to a return to the Bay Area, which opened the door for extension talks.
San Francisco has largely disappointed on the field this year, stumbling to a 68-72 record, which puts them well outside the NL wildcard race. However, with Chapman, Logan Webb and Jung Hoo Lee all signed long term, the Giants at least have some foundational pieces under team control.
If recent additions such as Heliot Ramos, Tyler Fitzgerald, Patrick Bailey and Kyle Harrison can continue to develop, San Francisco could turn a corner sooner than expected after hovering around the .500 mark for each of the last 3 campaigns.
Photo: Tobias Kleinlercher. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.