Braves Sign Michael Harris II to Eight-Year, $72-million Contract Extension
The Atlanta Braves have extended another member of their talented young core.
Following a 5-0 victory over the New York Mets on Monday, the team announced it had signed rookie Michael Harris II to an eight-year, $72-million contract extension. The deal runs through 2030 and includes a pair of club options for ‘31 and ‘32.
Harris’ contract will be worth $102 million across 10 years if both options are exercised, keeping him in Atlanta through his age-31 season. That’s a substantial investment for someone who’s only played 71 career major-league games.
Here’s the financial breakdown of Harris’ new contract:
2023: $5 million
2024: $5 million
2025: $8 million
2026: $8 million
2027: $9 million
2028: $10 million
2029: $10 million
2030: $12 million
2031: $15 million ($5 million buyout)
2032: $20 million ($5 million buyout)
The 21-year-old outfielder was scheduled to become arbitration-eligible after the 2024 campaign, making him a free agent following the 2027 season. By extending him, however, the Braves have bought out all his arbitration years and at least three free-agent years.
This signing comes just over two weeks after third baseman Austin Riley was inked to a 10-year, $212 million extension. Needless to say, no other MLB executive has been busier than Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos of late.
Of course, there’s always a level of risk involved when locking up young big-league players. Harris isn’t an ordinary youngster, though, as he’s currently among the favourites to win the 2022 NL Rookie of the Year Award.
The former third-round selection from 2019 is hitting .287/.325/.500 with 12 home runs and 39 RBIs over 268 plate appearances. He also owns a 126 wRC+ score and a 2.7 fWAR rating.
Thus far, Harris has posted the highest offensive WAR (12.4), fWAR and AVG among qualified NL rookies, according to FanGraphs.com. He’s also registered the third-most home runs and is tied for the third-highest wRC+.
Atlanta’s emerging young star has been one of the top defensive outfielders this season. The 6-foot lefty is currently tied for the fourth-most OAA (+6) and the seventh-most DRS (+5) among all MLB outfielders who’ve logged at least 500 innings.
At 21, there’s a strong chance Harris’ craft will further improve once he enters his prime years, both offensively and defensively. With that in mind, Anthopoulos opted to extend his young centre fielder, hoping it saves him money down the road.
The Braves, who took a similar approach with Ronald Acuña Jr.’s eight-year, $100-million contract, now have two-thirds of their outfield signed through at least 2026. But that window will likely extend across ‘28 as Acuña’s deal includes two team-friendly club options.
With Harris extended, retaining all-star shortstop Dansby Swanson, who’s an impending free agent, likely jumps to the top of Anthopoulos’ to-do list. But that business probably has to wait until the off-season.
Amid a tight divisional race, the Braves remain focused on trying to catch the Mets for first place in the NL East Division. Or, at the very least, keeping hold of the first wild-card seed.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85