The 31-year-old Andrelton Simmons, a four-time Gold Glove winner, spent the previous five seasons with the Los Angeles Angels after starting his career with the Atlanta Braves.
Despite the virtually ordinary offensive performance, his fielding skills have been so impressive that he got MVP votes in 2013, 2017, and 2018.
Simmons appeared in only 30 games with the Angels in 2020, in a pandemic-shortened 60-game season, losing time due to an ankle injury for the third consecutive summer. With Los Angeles’ hopes of making the playoffs fading, he opted out of the last week of the season.
Simmons has a career.269 batting average with 386 strikeouts in 4,280 plate appearances. With a lifetime strikeout rate of one every 10.24 at-bats, he is the most difficult active player in the big leagues to strike out, according to Baseball-Reference data.
Simmons, a native of Curacao who was chosen by the Braves in the second round in 2010, had his finest overall season in 2017 when he batted.278 with 14 home runs, 69 RBIs, 38 doubles, and 19 stolen bases.
His.981 lifetime fielding percentage is third among active shortstops in baseball, and analytics have long praised his versatility at the position.
How Much Does Andrelton Simmons Make?
Andrelton Simmons agreed to terms with the Chicago Cubs on a one-year, $4,000,000 deal, with $4,000,000 guaranteed and an annual average salary of $4,000,000. Simmons receives a basic salary of $4,000,000 in 2022.