Rendon to Angels: 7-year, $245 million deal (sources)

December 11, 2019

The Angels were expected to make a splash at the Winter Meetings to improve their pitching but instead made a surprising move to bolster their offense, agreeing to terms with third baseman Anthony Rendon on a seven-year, $245 million deal, a source told MLB.com on Wednesday. Rendon's contract includes no deferred money, a full no-trade clause and no opt-out, a source told MLB.com's Mark Feinsand. The club has not confirmed the deal.

A day after losing out on the Gerrit Cole sweepstakes, seeing him agree to terms on a nine-year, $324 million deal with the Yankees, the Angels pivoted to acquiring the best position player available in free agency in Rendon. He gives the Angels a potent offense, joining forces with three-time American League MVP Mike Trout and two-way star Shohei Ohtani.

Since Rendon turned down a qualifying offer from the Nationals, he will also cost the Angels a second-round Draft pick as well as $500,000 from their international bonus pool. With Rendon's annual average value of $35 million, the Angels' payroll is roughly $15 million higher than last year but about $30 million to $35 million below the luxury tax threshold.

Rendon, 29, is coming off a season that saw him finish third in the balloting for National League MVP while leading the Nationals to their first World Series title. Rendon batted .319/.412/.598 with 34 homers while leading the NL in doubles (44) and the Majors in RBIs (126). He struck out 86 times compared to 80 walks. He was an All-Star for the first time and won his second Silver Slugger Award, also winning in '14.

https://www.mlb.com/breaking-news/anthony-rendon-angels

Another "holy shit!" contract