“Free agency is something you earn by playing a long time, but when it came down to it, I’m more than excited to return to Baltimore”, Wieters said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. Colby Rasmus and Matt Wieters changed that this year by accepting the one-year, $15.8 million tender from their clubs.
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The qualifying offer is a big payday for the 29-year-old Rasmus, who signed a one-year, $8 million deal with Houston in January. Given, that if that is the plan, that would most likely have to include a multi-year deal of a few sort because Wieters would want to hit the free agent market next year as a catcher if he remains on the one-year QO deal.
FILE – In this June 9, 2014, file photo, Atlanta Braves shortstop Andrelton Simmons throws to first base in the first inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies in Denver.
Dave Cameron of FanGraphs projected that Rasmus would get a three year deal worth $42 million overall, while Jon Heyman had him at four years for $50 million.
After three consecutive seasons of declined qualifying offers, Anderson becomes the third player this season to accept. The deadline is Friday 5 p.m. EST and among the players facing decisions are second baseman Daniel Murphy (Mets) and pitcher Marco Estrada (Blue Jays).
The players are the first to accept qualifying offers since the system began as a tool to give teams protection from losing star players. Twenty players were tagged with qualifying offers. By extending a qualifying offer, the Royals will receive a compensatory draft pick between the first and second round if Gordon signs with another team. The signing club loses a top pick. 412 (7-for-17) with four homers, six RBIs and seven walks in six games. “It would have been nice obviously to have a long-term deal and whatnot, but I feel that it worked out pretty good”, Rasmus said during a conference call. “It was in my heart and my wife’s heart to go to Houston”. The three-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove victor was easily the best catcher on the market and could have seemingly landed a sizable contract, despite the elbow troubles and Tommy John surgery that cost him parts of the 2014 and 2015 seasons. He batted. 267 with eight homers and 25 RBIs, but his main contribution was his work with the pitching staff.
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Before Thursday, the qualifying offer was little more than a formality, a rubber-stamp, a foregone conclusion.
