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2012 Vesting Options

By Mike Axisa | February 19, 2011 at 8:08pm CDT

Vesting options are always worth keeping track of during the season, especially since they can often have consequences that are less than desirable. Last year Magglio Ordonez ($15MM), Kerry Wood ($11MM), and Brian Fuentes ($9MM) all had big money options that did not vest, though Darren Oliver ($3.25MM) and Trever Miller ($2MM) had some smaller ones that did. 

Here is a list of 2012 vesting options to keep an eye on this summer…

  • Bobby Abreu, Angels: $9MM option vests with 433 plate appearances. Abreu hasn't come to the plate fewer than 589 times in a season since 1997, his rookie year.
  • Adam Wainwright, Cardinals: His $9MM option for 2012 and $12MM option for 2013 will lock in as long as he does not finish 2011 on the disabled list. His second place finish in the 2010 Cy Young voting was step one of the vesting process.
  • Aramis Ramirez, Cubs: $16MM option vests if he is named MVP of either the regular season or League Championship Series, or if he is traded at some point in 2011.
  • Rafael Furcal, Dodgers: $12MM option vests with 600 plate appearances. Furcal has come to the plate 600+ times just once in the last three seasons (2009) due to injuries.
  • Jon Garland, Dodgers: $8MM option vests with 190 innings pitched. Garland hasn't thrown fewer than 191 1/3 innings since becoming a full-time starter in 2002.
  • Francisco Rodriguez, Mets: $17.5MM option vests with 55 games finished and if doctors declare him healthy at the end of the season.
  • Koji Uehara, Orioles: $4MM option vests with either 55 appearances or 25 games finished. Uehara hasn't reached either milestone in his first two big league seasons, though he came close in 2010: 43 appearances and 22 games finished.
  • Arthur Rhodes, Rangers: $4MM option vests with 62 appearances and if he's not on the disabled list at the end of the season.
  • Joakim Soria, Royals: $6MM option vests with 55 appearances, which he's done in three of his four big league seasons. The chances of it coming into play are microscopic, but Soria has a $6.5MM option for 2012 that could vest with 334 1/3 innings pitched (400 IP in 2010 & 2011). That was obviously put into his contract in case the team ever moved him into the rotation.
  • Dan Wheeler, Red Sox: $3MM option vests with 65 games; increases to $3.25MM with 70 games.  Wheeler reached 64 games in 2010, but had at least 69 in each of the previous five seasons.

Mark Buehrle is scheduled to become a free agent after the 2011 season and although he doesn't have a traditional option in his contract, he gets an extra year at $15MM tacked onto his current deal if he's traded at some point this season. 

Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.

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Baltimore Orioles Boston Red Sox Chicago Cubs Chicago White Sox Kansas City Royals Los Angeles Angels Los Angeles Dodgers New York Mets St. Louis Cardinals Texas Rangers Adam Wainwright Aramis Ramirez Arthur Rhodes Bobby Abreu Dan Wheeler Francisco Rodriguez Joakim Soria Jon Garland Koji Uehara Mark Buehrle Rafael Furcal

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View Comments (30)
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30 Comments

  1. wickedkevin

    14 years ago

    K-Rod will NOT finish 55 games this year.

    Reply
    • vtadave

      14 years ago

      Agreed. It’s not like the Mets have to risk upsetting a guy like K-Rod. Unless of course they are worried about him punching club officials.

      Reply
      • DrRickRollins

        14 years ago

        club official’s parents you mean

        Reply
    • MetsEventually

      14 years ago

      Not for the Mets, at least

      Reply
  2. rfffr

    14 years ago

    Aramis…owner of the most untradeable contract in baseball. I wonder if the Cubs would bench him in the NLCS to try to prevent his Pujols-blocking option from vesting.

    Reply
    • vtadave

      14 years ago

      Barry Zito disagrees, but with that option, Aramis is right up there.

      Reply
    • start_wearing_purple

      14 years ago

      Well I’d say most untradeable contract goes to Barry Zito… unless of course the Angels want him.

      As for Ramirez, he’s been one of the more productive third basemen baseball despite last year, which he was injured for part of. If he has a good start of the season I think some team might accept the fact that his option would vest if traded. Third baseman market looks weak for next offseason, so a 1.5 yr/$23M contract may not look too bad.

      Reply
    • mlb1981

      14 years ago

      the funniest part is the Cubs playing in the NLCS this year!! Have you looked at their team this year? They will finish 4th in the NL Central.

      Reply
      • CubsWorldChamps

        14 years ago

        Third.

        Reply
    • William S

      14 years ago

      Not even the least tradeable contract on the Cubs, let alone the entire league

      Reply
    • Ferrariman

      14 years ago

      a-rod is far and away the most untradeable contract in baseball. Tony Reagins has proven that he will take asinine contracts but not down right oblivious with zero upside contracts.

      Reply
    • Verlander_Will_Save_Us_All

      14 years ago

      Did you just use the words “Cubs,” “NLCS”…. and “to” in the same sentence.

      Reply
    • jb226 2

      14 years ago

      If he performs like he did last year, then yeah, he’s not going anywhere. Then again the option won’t vest, so it’s done after the year. And nobody would want him anyway, making trying to trade his contract moot.

      If he bounces back enough that the option is in danger of vesting or he actually has enough trade value to make people call about him (and if the Cubs were in the NLCS, by the way, it would be in no small part due to him), $16MM for him is really not that bad of a deal. It may be a couple million too much, but on essentially a one-year deal in a weak free agent market for third basemen, I don’t think it would be hard to move at all.

      Just sounds like a weak attempt at Cubs bashing to me.

      Reply
      • Guest 7263

        14 years ago

        16 million on the books, even with good performance, his injuries over the past two seasons would scare most teams away.

        Reply
  3. j6takish

    14 years ago

    Soria – Yes, Rhodes – Yes, K-Rod – No, Aram- No, Wainright- yes, Garland – yes, Furcal – No. The only toss up is Abreru. The Angels would be wise to watch his PA but he may have too strong of a season to keep out of the lineup

    Reply
    • DrRickRollins

      14 years ago

      pretty much agree. I think the Rhodes option is more of a toss up than Abreru though. not to mention 9MM is a small price to pay compare to Well’s…18,20MM annual?

      Reply
  4. jnolan33177

    14 years ago

    Roy Oswalt anyone? i think he has a vesting option or is it a club option?

    Reply
    • TheRealMaxPower

      14 years ago

      It is a club option. $16M for 2012 or a $2M buyout.

      Reply
      • Anthony

        14 years ago

        I pray the Phillies decline or Oswalt forgets how to pitch.

        Reply
  5. Chris Bosh

    14 years ago

    If I’m Waino, I’m hoping I hit the DL with 2 weeks to go in the season.

    Reply
    • Ferrariman

      14 years ago

      the team could still pick up the options i believe.

      Reply
  6. CaseyBlakeDeWitt

    14 years ago

    I find it interesting that Ramirez’s option vests if he wins the NLCS MVP, but not if he wins the World Series MVP. Of course, he’s on the Cubs, so he probably thought, why bother?

    Reply
    • jb226 2

      14 years ago

      If he won the World Series MVP with the Cubs, I’m pretty sure he’d get whatever deal he wanted dollar-wise.

      Reply
      • NickinIthaca

        14 years ago

        Tell that to Edgar Renteria…

        Reply
  7. Verlander_Will_Save_Us_All

    14 years ago

    Why do I have a feeling that Francisco Rodriguez will only pitch in 54 games this year?

    Reply
    • start_wearing_purple

      14 years ago

      Because he’s fallen out of favor with the club, they’re supposedly short on funds, and odds are they won’t contend?

      Reply
      • Verlander_Will_Save_Us_All

        14 years ago

        Yes. That is what I was getting at.

        Reply
  8. NickinIthaca

    14 years ago

    Joakim Soria always struck me as the type of guy you could count on for 335 innings out of the pen…

    Reply
  9. GoCubs10

    14 years ago

    Ramierez will be a cub for years to come because he says he wants to end his career with the cubs

    Reply
    • Guest 7264

      14 years ago

      That is if the Cubs still want him. If he’s injured and can’t play he won’t. So, his contract won’t allow the Cubs to trade him during 2011 without his option vesting. Smooth move Hendry or maybe I should say John McDonough or Sam Zell.

      Reply

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