José Ramirez Cleveland Guardians New Contract & Salary
Jose Ramirez agreed to a five-year, $124 million contract with the Cleveland Guardians, with $124 million guaranteed and a $24,800,000 average annual pay.
Ramirez will be paid $12,000,000 in base salary and $12,000,000 in total salary in 2022.
Including the option for 2023, which the Guardians will take, Ramirez will receive a total of $150 million in compensation over the course of five years beginning in 2022.
Passan goes on to say that the contract contains a comprehensive no-trade provision.
If the deal is completed, it will be the richest contract in Cleveland baseball history, with a value greater than twice that of the three-year, $60 million deal inked by free agent Edwin Encarnacion in 2017.
For the past two seasons, Ramirez has been among the best hitters in the American League, winning three Silver Slugger Awards and a Gold Glove Award.
In 2021, he had 36 home runs, 103 RBIs, and 27 stolen bases after finishing second in the AL MVP race in 2020. For nine seasons, Ramirez slugged 163 home runs and had a 34.3 WAR.
Several teams, including the Toronto Blue Jays, were linked to Ramirez when the lockout ended in March, but the rumors died down once the Blue Jays acquired Oakland’s Matt Chapman.
The San Diego Padres are the frontrunners to acquire Ramirez if a deal can’t be reached, according to MLB Network’s Joel Sherman and Passan.
In 2021, the Guardians finished with an 80-82 record, and this contract will retain their finest player in Cleveland for the rest of his career.
