SAN DIEGO (AP) - First baseman Wil Myers and the San Diego Padres finalized an $83 million, six-year contract on Tuesday, the largest deal in the team’s history.
The 26-year-old Myers hit 28 homers and drove in 94 runs last season and also stole 28 bases.
“He’s got all sorts of potential,” Padres general manager A.J. Preller said on a conference call. “He can be the nucleus of championship-type team.”
Myers, who had been eligible for salary arbitration, receives a $15 million signing bonus, of which $1 million is payable within 15 days of the deal’s approval by the commissioner’s office, $5.5 million on Nov. 15, 2018, and $8.5 million on Nov. 15, 2019.
He gets salaries of $2 million apiece in the next two seasons, $3 million in 2019 and $20 million in each of the final three years. San Diego has a $20 million team option for 2023 with a $1 million buyout. Myers gets a suite on road trips and would get a one-time $1 million assignment bonus if traded.
“Hopefully you’re buying the prime years of Wil’s career,” Preller said. “You need some core pieces that are going to be there.”
“Our plan is we try to invest in guys we think are going to be here for the future. There is going to have to be some patience. There are going to be some young guys on the field this year. It’s going to be fun to see how that group grows together in the next few years,” he said.
Myers would have been eligible for free agency after the 2019 season. The deal tops a $75 million, four-year contract pitcher James Shields signed before the 2015 season.
Myers was an All-Star last season when the game was played at Petco Park. His production tailed off after the break.
“What he showed the fans of San Diego the first half, the great ones do that all year long,” Preller said. “He’s excited to put together two halves. I don’t think we’ve really seen his full potential. It’s the first time he’s been through the grind of 162 games.”
Myers was called up midway through his rookie years and then had two seasons that were interrupted by a wrist injury.
“He wants to be here the next few years when hopefully we turn this thing around,” Preller said.
Myers will hold a news conference at Petco Park on Monday.
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AP Sports Writer Beth Harris in Los Angeles and AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum in New York contributed to this report.
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