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Washington Nationals: Comparing Adam Eaton’s Contract to Kevin Kiermaier’s Reported Extension

By Drew Douglas

Mar 16, 2017; West Palm Beach, FL, USA; Washington Nationals shortstop Trea Turner (7) fields a ground ball before throwing to first base for an out against the New York Mets during a spring training game at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 16, 2017; West Palm Beach, FL, USA; Washington Nationals shortstop Trea Turner (7) fields a ground ball before throwing to first base for an out against the New York Mets during a spring training game at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /
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Late Tuesday night, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported that the Rays and Kevin Kiermaier agreed on a contract extension of six years and $53.5 million.  How does this compare with Washington Nationals center fielder Adam Eaton’s contract?

When the Washington Nationals acquired center fielder Adam Eaton from the Chicago White Sox back in December, one of the most discussed assets that Eaton brought was his extremely team friendly deal.  Now that the somewhat comparable Kevin Kiermaier has reportedly agreed to a six year extension according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, we take a look at how the two stack up.

In March of 2015, Eaton signed a five year contract extension worth $23.5 million with the White Sox.  His deal also includes two club options at the end.  Eaton’s deal is fairly backloaded and his salary increases every year.  Although his salary is constantly increasing, his contract will never be a burden.  Assuming both of his options are picked up, the most he makes in a season is $10.5 million.

This season, Eaton will be making just $4 million.  To an ordinary person like you and me, this seems like a TON of money.  However, this is a huge bargain for a professional ballplayer, especially a player of Eaton’s caliber.  Eaton’s contract is extremely team friendly, and will be beneficial to the Nats when they attempt to resign Bryce Harper.

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Since Kiermaier’s contract has not yet been officially announced, we do not know the exact details and breakdown.  What we do know, is that it is for six years and worth about $53.5 million.  Topkin has also reported that there are possible opt outs, but this is not yet known for sure.

Kiermaier is a good player overall, but he is best known for his defense.  He has won Gold Glove awards in each of the last two seasons and is one of baseball’s most elite defenders.  However, he struggles a bit at the plate. His career batting average is just .258.

Fortunately, at just 26 years old, Kiermaier is still fairly young and has plenty of time to improve.  Obviously, the Rays were willing to look past his offensive struggles since they signed him to a fairly lucrative long term deal.

I, for one, believe that the Rays overpaid.  In 2012, Andrew McCutchen signed a six year extension worth $51.5 million.  This is $2 million less than Kiermaier’s reported deal.  McCutchen is a perennial All-Star and among the best players in the league.  Although Kiermaier is an elite defender, he is inferior to McCutchen, who is a great all-around player.

If you want to know how well giving huge contracts to defensive specialists works, just ask the Cubs who paid Jason Heyward $21 million to hit .230 last year.  The fact that Kiermaier received such a lucrative deal is interesting, especially considering that big-time sluggers like Mark Trumbo and Jose Bautista struggled in free agency this winter.

Eaton and Kiermaier are similar in the sense that they both play great defense in center field, they both get on base a lot, and they both have some pop, but don’t typically hit a lot homers. Sabermetrics also love both players.  According to Fangraphs, Eaton has a career WAR of 12.8, while Kiermaier’s is 13.1.

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We already knew that Eaton’s contract was extremely team friendly, but now that Kiermaier has reportedly agreed to an extension, we have something to compare it to.  Eaton is one of the top outfielders in baseball, and is getting paid less than some bench players.  This makes Eaton one of the most valuable members of the Nationals and allows them to have quite a bit of financial flexibility.

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