The Atlanta Braves have signed shortstop Andrelton Simmons to a seven-year, $58 million contract extension, shortly after the team agreed to a long-term deal with relief pitcher Craig Kimbrel.
Considered one of the best shortstops in the game, the 24-year-old Simmons batted .248 with 59 RBIs last season. He also recorded a league-high 499 assists, which helped him snag his first Gold Glove award.
“We feel that Andrelton is one of the premier shortstops in the game today, and we are happy that we were able to agree on this multiyear contract,” Braves general manager Frank Wren said in a statement, via ESPN.
The record-breaking deal is the “largest ever awarded to a player subject to American draft rules with less than two years of service time,” according to The Associated Press. Simmons’ progressive contract offers him $1 million in 2014, $3 million in 2015, $6 million in 2016, $8 million in 2017, $11 million in 2018, $13 million in 2019 and $15 million in 2020. He also will collect a $1 million signing bonus.Â
Like Kimbrel, Simmons avoided salary arbitration by coming to terms with the Braves.
Photo via Twitter/@CespedesBBQ
