Charlie Blackmon signed a major extension.
A year after finishing fifth in the NL MVP voting, Charlie Blackmon has decided to remain with the only organization he has ever played for, agreeing to a six-year, $108 million contract extension with the Colorado Rockies. Pegged as one of the biggest bats in the historically loaded 2019 MLB free agent class, Blackmon, 31, will instead make $21 million from 2019-2021, with player options at $21 million for 2022, and $10 million for 2023. The deal restructures Blackmon’s $14 million contract this season into a $12 million salary with a $2 million signing bonus, with incentives that could push the total value of the contract up to $116 million if Blackmon finishes in the top 3 in the NL MVP voting from 2018-2022 ($2 million raise in 2023) or fourth/fifth in the voting ($1 million raise). Blackmon’s 2023 base salary will increase by $5 million to $15 million if he has between 400 and 575 plate appearances in 2022.
A second-round pick by the Rockies in 2008, Blackmon didn’t see regular time in the MLB until he turned 27 in 2014 but made the most of the opportunity by hitting .288/.335/.440 with 19 HR and 28 stolen bases, making his first All-Star appearance. Last season, Blackmon burst onto the national scene, making his second All-Star appearance and winning his second Silver Slugger after hitting .331/.399/.691 with 37 HR, 104 RBI, 137 runs scored, 213 hits, 35 doubles, and 14 triples. At season’s end, Blackmon won the National Batting title and led the league in runs scored, hits, triples, and total bases, while finishing in the top ten in WAR, OBP, doubles, RBI, and OPS. From 2014-2017, Blackmon has increased his HR, AVG, OBP, SLG, and WAR totals each season, with the latter rising from 2.2 in 2014, to 6.0 in 2017. Over that time frame, he has hit .308/.366/.512 with a 120 OPS+, averaging 26 HR, 79 RBI, 106 runs scored, 187 hits, 26 stolen bases, 32 doubles, 8 triples, and 3.8 WAR per season.
Following an offseason where many of the top free agents struggled to find homes, Blackmon’s decision to remain in Colorado shouldn’t be too surprising after Zack Cozart was the only position player 32 or older to sign a deal of 3+ years in free agency. Perhaps most importantly for Blackmon, he now doesn’t run the risk of searching for a contract with draft pick compensation attached to his name, as there is no doubt the Rockies would have tendered him a qualifying offer at season’s end, which he likely would have rejected. Once the ink dries, Blackmon will become the 4th position player to sign a multi-year extension that will pay them at least $10 million at age 37 or older, joining Yadier Molina, Adrian Beltre, and Ben Zobrist. Financially, the Rockies now have $225.90 million in future commitments and payroll of $143.3 million this season, while also needing to find money to convince third baseman Nolan Arenado to remain with the Rockies.
Blackmon is without a doubt superstar, trailing only Jose Altuve for the most hits in the MLB since 2014. However, despite being arguably the game’s best leadoff hitter, he does still come with a considerable amount of risk. Defensively, Blackmon has never been great in center field, with a career -1.6 dWAR, and -12 Defensive Runs Saved in the outfield. Additionally, Blackmon’s ability on the base paths, once his calling card, has dwindled slightly, as he his stolen base totals have decreased from 43 to 17 to 14 last season, although it should be noted that the total is offset somewhat by a career-high 14 triples.
Overall, a huge factor in Blackmon remaining in Colorado likely had to do with his home and road splits, which would have without a doubt hurt him in free agency. Of all the players who have benefited from the thin air at Coors Field, Blackmon hs one of the most extreme gaps between his home and road numbers throughout his career as a big league regular.
2014 Coors Field: 77 G, 13 HR, 48 RBI, .331/.391/.524, 103 H, 15 2B, 163 TB, 21 BB, 45 K
2014 Road: 77 G, 6 HR, 24 RBI, .241/.269/.348, 68 H, 12 2B, 98 TB, 10 BB, 51 K
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2015 Coors Field: 79 G, 7 HR, 35 RBI, .331/.390/.500, 106 H, 17 2B, 160 TB, 25 BB, 45 K
2015 Road: 78 G, 10 HR, 23 RBI, .238/.300/.395, 70 H, 14 2B, 116 TB, 21 BB, 67 K
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2016 Coors Field: 68 G, 12 HR, 47 RBI, .335/.399/.540, 93 H, 15 2B, 150 TB, 24 BB, 39 K
2016 Road: 75 G, 17 HR, 35 RBI, .313/.363/.563, 94 H, 20 2B, 169 TB, 19 BB, 63 K
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2017 Coors Field: 78 G, 24 HR, 60 RBI, .391/.466/.773, 119 H, 18 2B, 235 TB, 39 BB, 50 K
2017 Road: 81 G, 13 HR, 44 RBI, .276/.337/.447, 94 H, 17 2B, 152 TB, 26 BB, 85 K
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Career at Coors Field: 372 G, 61 HR, 212 RBI, .346/.406/.566, 495 H, 78 2B, 810 TB, 117 BB, 205 K
Career on Road: 397 G, 54 HR, 149 RBI, .265/.314/.436, 391 H, 78 2B, 643 TB, 85 BB, 317 K
Away from Colorado, Blackmon has a career OPS .222 lower than at home, with lower offensive totals nearly across the board, more strikeouts, and fewer walks despite playing more games on the road. Basically, Blackmon is a product of the middle ground between average road numbers and elite home numbers, with the elite home numbers being big enough to produce strong yearly outputs. In the case of Blackmon and the Rockies, extending their marriage made sense for both sides, with the Rockies keeping their All-Star table setter in the lineup for years to come, while Blackmon gets to avoid testing his luck away from the boom box that is Coors Field.
