The Colorado Rockies keep surprising us all with their moves, for better or worse.
A year after trading Nolan Arenado and a few months after failing to trade Trevor Story before he hit free agency, we all thought they just didn’t like winning, or trying for that matter.
To our surprise, however, they signed infielder/outfielder Kris Bryant to a huge seven-year, $182 million pact last week, and they announced another good move today.
“Versatile infielder Ryan McMahon and the Colorado Rockies are in agreement on a six-year, $70 million contract extension, sources familiar with deal tell ESPN. McMahon, 27, took a leap forward defensively in 2021 and has enough thunder in his bat for Colorado to commit long-term,” ESPN’s Jeff Passan tweeted on Monday afternoon.
Versatile infielder Ryan McMahon and the Colorado Rockies are in agreement on a six-year, $70 million contract extension, sources familiar with deal tell ESPN. McMahon, 27, took a leap forward defensively in 2021 and has enough thunder in his bat for Colorado to commit long-term.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) March 21, 2022
McMahon is, indeed, versatile.
A Very Useful Piece For The Rockies
He can play all around the infield, except for shortstop, and do it well.
In addition, he is still rather young and should be about to enter his prime, at 27.
In 2021, he hit .254/.331/.449 in 596 plate appearances, with 23 home runs, 80 runs, and 86 RBI.
His solid bat and acceptable defense make him a useful player, and the Rockies did the right thing by extending him.
He still may have some untapped offensive potential, too, if he can lift the ball a bit more (like he did in 2021, when he hit 24 percent liners and 37.5 percent fly balls).
He could be a candidate to fully break out in 2022.
Overall, it was a move in the right direction for a franchise that needs about six or seven more of these, if not more.
We hope they can be contenders in time before Bryant’s contract is up or he starts declining.
NEXT: MLB Fans Get A Glimpse Of Kris Bryant On His New Team