This week has seen several MLB stars get enormous, life-changing deals during the Winter Meetings.
From Sunday to Thursday, baseball was in a state of frenzy: agents, general managers, presidents of baseball operations and even players gathered in San Diego to finalize deals and trades aplenty.
Trea Turner got $300 million from the Philadelphia Phillies, Aaron Judge earned $360 million from the New York Yankees, Xander Bogaerts collected $280 million from the San Diego Padres, and there were other high-profile deals.
Despite the huge amount of money given away by MLB teams this week, the Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout remains the owner of the largest contract ever signed in the sport.
“Largest Contracts in MLB History [By Total Value]: 1. Mike Trout: $426.5 Million; 2. Mookie Betts: $365.0 Million; 3. Aaron Judge: $360.0 Million; 4. Francisco Lindor: $341.0 Million; 5. Fernando Tatis Jr. $340.0 Million,” CBS Sports HQ tweeted.
Largest Contracts in MLB History
[By Total Value]:1. Mike Trout: $426.5 Million
2. Mookie Betts: $365.0 Million
3. Aaron Judge: $360.0 Million
4. Francisco Lindor: $341.0 Million
5. Fernando Tatis Jr. $340.0 Million pic.twitter.com/tTHzTPW1ze— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) December 7, 2022
The Largest Contract In MLB History
On March 19, 2019, Trout signed his huge deal with the Angels, one that made him the highest paid ballplayer in the world at the time.
He still owns the largest contract in total value, but he is no longer the player who earns the most money on a per-year basis.
Judge, at $40 million AAV (average annual value), has that distinction among position players.
When we consider the whole pool of MLB players, nobody earns more than New York Mets pitcher Max Scherzer at his $43.3 million salary.
Trout remains a bonafide star: he hit .283/.369/.630 this season, with 40 home runs in just 119 games.
He will miss time with an injury here or there, but when he is healthy, there aren’t five hitters better than him in Major League Baseball.
He is still 31, so he should have plenty of productive years left.
NEXT: Angels Insider Reveals How Shohei Ohtani Stays In The Loop