Blue Jays complete five-year free agent deal with Anthony Santander This week. The deal came with $92.5MM of guaranteed money, but it’s known that included a substantial amount of deferred payments. Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith first reported on Monday that MLB calculated the net value of the contract to be close to $70MM.
Sportsnet’s David Shi reported more details on the contract structure this afternoon. The net present value (NPV) is just under $68.6 million, with an annual competitive balancing tax hit of about $13.7 million. The transaction includes $61.75MM of deferred funding. The specific layout is as follows:
- $13.5MM signing bonus ($6.75MM deferred)
- Salary in 2025 is $13.5MM (deferred salary is $10MM)
- Salary in 2026 is $16.5MM (deferred salary is $10MM)
- Salary in 2027 is $16.5MM (deferred salary is $10MM)
- Salary in 2028 is $14.75 ($10 deferred)
- Salary in 2029 is $12.75 ($10 deferred)
- 15MM club option for 2030; 5MM buyout guaranteed, which will be delayed entirely
Santander has the option to exit after the 27-year season. He owes $60MM in the first three years, so he’ll weigh whether to keep it for two years and $32.5MM ($25MM of which will be deferred). If he opts out, Toronto can overturn that by guaranteeing his 2030 salary of $17.5MM. This would also increase Santander’s salary to $17.25 and $15.25 for the 2028 and ’29 seasons, respectively. The maximum value over six years is $110 – a cap that can only be reached if Santander opts out and the Jayhawks overturn it.
When the offseason began, the slugger reportedly sought five years in prison and nine figures in guaranteed money. He received a 5-year sentence, but from an NPV perspective, his performance was well below $100MM. MLBTR projected Santander’s deal at four years and $80 million at the start of the offseason. He beat that goal in raw funding, but not in terms of net present value.
The Jays have entered luxury tax territory. They are taxed at 20% on expenditures between $241MM and $261MM. They are close to the critical point of 261MM. Adding Santander could result in a tax hit of about $3MM next season. Toronto will tax expenditures between $261MM and $281MM at a rate of 32%.
