If the Detroit Tigers were holding out hope that they would find a cost-effective way to keep Kevin McGonigle in Detroit for a long time, the Seattle Mariners may have just erased it.
The Mariners have locked down their top prospect, infielder Colt Emerson, to an eight-year deal worth $95 million. Emerson’s deal includes a ninth-year club option and is the largest deal ever given to a player who has yet to make their major league debut.
There are a couple of distinctions to make for Tigers fans. First, even with his graduation to the Tigers’ roster, McGonigle is viewed as the second-best prospect in baseball. Emerson is No. 7, according to MLB Pipeline. McGoingle skipped Triple-A, while Emerson opened the season in the minors.
McGonigle’s potential contract extension is certainly going to have a higher AAV than the $11.8 million mark that Emmerson has with the Mariners. At this point, McGonigle’s contract extension would likely look somewhat similar to the deal Roman Anthony signed with the Boston Red Sox last summer.
Mariners move may have ruined Tigers plan for Kevin McGonigle contract extension
If the Tigers were hoping to truly take advantage of McGonigle being a dude and finding a team-friendly deal that wipes out his arbitration and early free agency years, they should have made a sincere effort to sign him to a contract extension last year. Along those lines, credit goes to the Mariners; their extension with Emerson will turn heads, and if he is the talent that most expect him to be, it will prove to be a cost-effective deal.
McGonigle’s hot start at the major league level is also why the Tigers may have missed their opportunity to save money on a contract extension. The 21-year-old has five hits through his first 17 plate appearances with two doubles and four RBI. In other words, the Tigers can’t count on the idea that they would be spending on projection and not an expectation that is currently being established.
In short, Emerson’s deal with the Mariners pushes the floor of McGonigle’s potential contract even higher. The longer the Tigers wait, the more they miss the chance to save money. Placing him on the Opening Day roster was a level of urgency that Scott Harris and Co. haven’t always shown. It’s now time to take it a step further and find value in a long-term contract, even if it’s not of the team-friendly variety it once could have been.