Tampa Rays, Matt Moore to Sign 5-Year, $14M Contract

by Justin Bopp on Dec 9, 2011 11:03 AM EST in MLB Breaking News

The Tampa Rays have reportedly agreed to sign left-handed pitcher Matt Moore to a 5-year, guaranteed $14 million contract according to Jerry Crasnick.

The club plans to announce the contract this afternoon, which includes options that could raise the value to $37.5 million over 8 years, and could go all the way up to $40 million with escalators:

Twitter / @jcrasnick - #Rays reach agreement with pitcher Matt Moore on 5-year, guaranteed $14M contract, source says
Twitter / @jcrasnick - "The deal includes several club options that could raise value to $37.5M over 8 years. It could top $40M if he hits escalators."
Source -- Matt Moore, Tampa Bay Rays reach five-year, $14 million deal - ESPN
"Moore, a 23-year-old left-hander, has emerged as one of the elite young prospects in baseball. He went 12-3 with a 1.92 ERA in 27 starts for Double-A Montgomery and Triple-A Durham this season, striking out 210 batters and walking only 46 in 155 innings. Late in the minor league season, ESPN's Keith Law ranked Moore as the No. 2 prospect in the game behind Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper."

Twitter / @jcrasnick - "Sources say #Rays plan to announce contract at news conference Friday afternoon"
Twitter / @JimBowdenESPNxm - "The Rays did a phenomenal job in signing Matt Moore. Remember 1st 3 yrs he'd be non arbit..which means only 12m for 1st two arbit yrs STEAL"

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Amazing Again

They clearly seem to pick the right players in terms of being open to this – This contract could very well also be a steal depending on how it’s written for the options. And regardless, this kid just earned himself at minimum $14 M in the Major Leagues. It’s a nice place to be for a 22 year old.

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by Jason Hunt on Dec 9, 2011 12:04 PM EST reply actions

Davis, Niemann or Shields

This also tells me that at least one of them is probably getting traded before February. With Moore now locked up, there’s one too many pitchers for that rotation.

I still think Shields to the Reds for one of the catchers + someone makes a lot of sense. Could Grandal + Alonso for Shields and a bullpen arm make some sense for both teams?

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by Jason Hunt on Dec 9, 2011 12:07 PM EST reply actions