Miguel Cabrera to become highest paid baseball player in history

The Detroit Tigers have made, what some might consider, a questionable decision to retain 30 year old Venezuelan first baseman Miguel Cabrera with a ten year contract.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) Cabrera, who turns 31 in April, was retained for $292 million. He will earn $22 million for the final two years of his current contract and $31 over the eight years afterwards.

Cabrera has played in the MLB since 2003 where he made his debut with the Florida Marlins. He played with that club until 2007 when he and pitcher Dontrelle Willis was traded to the Tigers.

In March 2008 Cabrera made an eight-year contract extension deal with the Tigers for $152.3 million. At the time this deal was the fourth largest in baseball history and the largest in the history of the Tigers franchise.

This is not the only questionable decision made by a ball club in recent days. The Anaheim Angels signed a $240 million 10 year contract with first baseman Albert Pujols in 2012, which turned out to be a great move for the Angels after a rough start in the 2012 season.

Part of the reason for this questionable move is to keep Cabrera from contemplating a future beyond the Tigers, options he may seriously contemplate if he wins a third MVP award, which would be his third in as many years, and gains free agency in the next off season.

This huge move is strange after the Tigers traded first baseman Prince Fielder to the Texas Rangers with $30 million to escape from a $214 million, nine-year contract. The club is also looking to release pitcher Max Scherzer who turned down a six-year $144 million offer.

The Tigers will pay out $59 million per season from 2016-19 for just two players, Cabrera and right handed pitcher Justin Verlander.

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