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Miami is close to signing Christian Yelich to a 7-year, $49 million extension. MLB.com's Joe Frisaro was among the first to report the deal:
The Marlins on Wednesday reached an agreement with left fielder Christian Yelich on a seven-year contract extension worth $49.570 million, a source has told MLB.com.
Former Marlin Mike Lowell is quite fond of the deal, noting Yelich is a solid "young player with major upside." Lowell believes the deal is beneficial for both sides.
Good move for both sides. Solid young player with major upside.
— Mike Lowell (@mikelowell25) March 18, 2015
It is no longer just Giancarlo Stanton Miami's division rivals have to worry about. You can now add Yelich to that list moving forward.
#Mets will see more than Giancarlo Stanton in OF for #Marlins for long time. Christian Yelich to get 7-year deal: http://t.co/ALOLAMuG6y
— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinESPN) March 19, 2015
Can anybody really be considered illogical for turning down guaranteed money?
Oh, how I'm so looking forward to the "Christian Yelich is an idiot for agreeing to accept $50 million" tweets. Always so much fun!
— robneyer (@robneyer) March 18, 2015
Beyond The Box Score's Bryan Grosnick thinks the Yelich signing proves the Marlins are headed in the right direction. He is confident this is the type of move that builds trust in the organization.
Yahoo! Sports Mike Oz believes Yelich is worth the money based on his production over such a short period of time:
Yelich was a prime target. He only figures to get better and more valuable, while baseball salaries only figure to rise. It's always a risk when you circumvent the arbitration process with a long-term contract full of guaranteed riches, but everything we've seen from Yelich so far makes us believe the Marlins will get their money's worth.
Could the Marlins be getting a bargain? Some think so:
Given Yelich's age and advanced approach at the plate, not to mention the strong possibility of power coming as he gets more comfortable against big league pitching, the Marlins are likely looking at one of the best bargains in baseball for a long time, and they bought out at least one year of free agency in the process.