It may not last very long since Bryce Harper could eclipse him at any moment, but for now Manny Machado is owner of the largest free-agent contract in MLB history thanks to the 10-year, $300 million deal he agreed to Tuesday with the San Diego Padres.
Machado’s contract ends another shortstop’s long reign at the top of this list. Alex Rodriguez held the No. 1 spot first after he got $252 million from the Rangers in 2001 and then when he signed with the Yankees for $275 million in 2008.
A-Rod won a title with the Yankees in 2009 and had plenty of success, but many of the other mega-contracts have not worked out nearly as well. Robinson Cano, who signed a 10-year, $240 million deal with the Mariners in 2014, just got traded to the Mets after Seattle failed to reach the postseason in his time there, and he’s coming off a season in which he was suspended 80 games for a positive drug test.
Prince Fielder inked a nine-year, $214 million contract with the Tigers in 2012, and he was traded to the Rangers two years later and out of baseball by 2017. Jason Heyward’s eight-year, $184 million deal with the Cubs has been a flop, the light-hitting outfielder failing to produce offensively in his three years in Chicago.
Others have worked out, though. Max Scherzer has so far earned every penny of the seven-year, $210 million contract he signed with the Nationals in 2015, winning the Cy Young Award in 2016 and 2017. And while David Price may not have lived up to the seven-year, $217 million deal he signed with the Red Sox in 2016, he did help them win it all last October, going 3-1 in the postseason with a 3.46 ERA.
The full list, which does not include Giancarlo Stanton’s 13-year, $325 million deal because it was an extension and not signed through free agency:
1. Manny Machado, Padres: 10 years, $300 million (2019-2028)
2. Alex Rodriguez, Yankees: 10 years, $275 million (2008-17)
3. Alex Rodriguez, Rangers: 10 years, $252 million (2001-10)
4 (tie). Albert Pujols, Angels: 10 years, $240 million (2012-21)
4 (tie). Robinson Cano, Mariners: 10 years, $240 million (2014-23)
6. David Price, Red Sox: 7 years, $217 million (2016-22)
7. Prince Fielder, Tigers: 9 years, $214 million (2012-20)
8. Max Scherzer, Nationals: 7 years, $210 million (2015-21)
9. Zack Greinke, Diamondbacks: 6 years, $206.5 million (2016-21)
10. Jason Heyward, Cubs: 8 years, $184 million (2016-23)