LAKELAND, Fla. – This is one number put up by Miguel Cabrera that is not subject to debate.
The Triple Crown winner agreed Friday to the richest contract in American sports, a $292 million, 10-year deal with the Detroit Tigers.
“I want to finish my career here. I have worked hard to get better, and Detroit is like a house for me,” Cabrera said.
Cabrera has won the last two AL MVP awards, both times beating out Angels phenom Mike Trout in votes that set off heated disputes in the baseball world.
Those in Cabrera’s corner claimed his fearsome hitting stats and triple-digit RBIs were worthy. Those touting Trout argued he was a better all-around player and pointed to the value of his wins above replacement.
Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski and manager Brad Ausmus stood by Cabrera, flanking him for the announcement at the Tigers’ spring training complex.
“He’s on track to be one of the greatest players in the history of baseball,” Dombrowski said. “He’s done a lot for the team and a lot for Detroit.”
Cabrera was due $44 million over the final two years of his $152.3 million, eight-year contract. The new agreement incorporates that money and adds $248 million over the following eight years.
Cabrera turns 31 next month and has helped the Tigers win three straight AL Central championships. A slugger with power to all fields and still very much in his prime, he is among seven players to hit at least .320 with 365 homers and 1,260 RBIs, joining Babe Ruth, Jimmie Foxx, Ted Williams, Lou Gehrig, Albert Pujols and Stan Musial, according to STATS.
“Good for him,” Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said. “He plays in another stratosphere.”
The deal came shortly before opening day in Detroit, on Monday against Kansas City at Comerica Park, and soon after Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer turned down the team’s long-term contract proposal.
Cabrera will make $43,195 per plate appearance under the deal, based on his yearly average of 676 plate appearances during six seasons with the Tigers. That’s higher than the average U.S. yearly wage of $42,498 in 2012, according to the Social Security Administration.
An eight-time All-Star, Cabrera has a .321 career average with 365 homers and 1,260 runs batted in. He played 148 games last year despite a sore back and left hip flexor, a strained lower abdomen, shin trouble and a groin tear that hampered him in the postseason and led to offseason surgery.
His body might get more of a break this season. He’s moving across the diamond, shifting from third base back to his previous position at first base after Prince Fielder was traded to Texas for second baseman Ian Kinsler.
Cabrera takes over baseball’s highest-paying contract from Alex Rodriguez, who agreed to a $252 million, 10-year deal with Texas that started in 2001, was traded to the Yankees after three seasons and then signed a $275 million, 10-year deal with New York in December 2006.
A steady presence in the lineup – Cabrera has played 157 or more games in eight of the last 10 seasons – he hit .348 with 44 homers and 137 RBIs last season to win his second consecutive MVP award.
In 2012, Cabrera put together baseball’s first Triple Crown since 1967, hitting .330 with 44 homers and 139 RBIs.
