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The biggest name in free agency, among positional players, this off-season was Jake Benson. The biggest name, got the biggest contract as Benson signed a 5yr. $75 million deal with the Anaheim Angels.
The defending National League champions will pay Benson $10 million up front as a signing bonus and then pay out $13 million over the course of his first year. From there, the contract is $16M in year two, $14M in year three, & $12M in year four. The fifth year of the contract comes in the form of a mutual option, where Benson can opt out of the deal and become a free agent at the age of 36 or the Angels can buy out the remaining year for $2.5 million.
Benson is a former Rookie of the Year winner, 5-time Silver Slugger, & 6-time All-Star. He is a career .282 hitter, with a .376 OBP, 215 homeruns and 1598 hits. The most impressive stat on Benson's resume is his 811 career stolen bases. Ranking 2nd all-time, Benson is 87 steals behind Vinny Simon for the J5B record. Based on his stolen base numbers from the last 3 years, Benson could potentially pass Simon this year as Simon still is not officially retired, but was out of baseball in season 14 and has yet to sign with an organization for this year.
Keep your eyes on the base paths this year in Anaheim.
