$105 million for Chase Burns in Cincinnati

The Cincinnati Reds just pulled off a great move.

They've convinced Chase Burns, one of MLB's top young players, to delay free agency by two years.

Instead of becoming a free agent after the 2031 season, Burns has agreed to a contract that keeps him with the Ohio-based team through the end of the 2033 season.

The deal, which begins in 2027, will pay him $105 million over seven years. Jon Morosi was the first to report the news, noting that this is a record amount for a young player with less than four years of service time.

On average, that works out to $15 million per year. That said, his years when he wasn't eligible for arbitration (2027, 2028) and his arbitration years (2029 through 2031) aren't worth as much as his free-agency years, namely 2032 and 2033.

Extensions like this are becoming increasingly popular with teams. It's a great way to ensure they can keep a young player a little longer than expected.

And for players, it's also advantageous in some ways. Being offered a nine-figure contract at just 23 years old is appealing.

But if he continues to dominate and salaries keep rising, he might regret giving the Reds two years of free agency. And that's even though he'll be a free agent heading into his 31-year-old season.

Burns was the second overall pick in 2024. By 2025, he had played in 13 Major League games (eight starts).

This season, he has a 2.54 ERA in 18 starts. He was invited to the All-Star Game and will receive Cy Young votes, if all goes well at the end of the season. He's one of the league's top young players, and the Reds have recognized that. Hats off to them!

Created by humans, assisted by AI.