First, every team does NOT have contracts like the ones given to Miggy and JV ($28M+ STARTING at the age of 32) and the the Tigers are the ONLY team that has two of them!
I NEVER said that paying players is a bad thing. Not once! When they signed Miggy to the first contract I was as happy as the rest of you. My point is, and always has been, paying players past their prime is a terrible way to do things. THAT was the reason I hated the JV extension and the Miggy extension.
Unfortunately, I will be proven right.
2015 (age starting the season)
Verlander (32) $28 Mil
Cabrera (31)
$22 Mil
Now, how many players have been MVP or CYA caliber over the last 3-5 years? Let's look at players due to average $20 Mil per year or more the next few seasons
Name (Current Age), Team (Average guaranteed salary)
C. Lee (37),
PHI ($40.0 Mil for 2016 and option buyout)
R. Howard (35),
PHI ($35.0 Mil for 2016 and option buyout)
C. Kershaw (
27),
LAD ($35.2 Mil from 2016-2020)
M. Scherzer (31),
WSN ($32.5 Mil from 2016-2021)
M. Cabrera (32),
DET ($31.0 Mil from 2016-2023)
J. Hamilton (34),
TEX ($30.4 Mil from 2016-2017)
C.C. Sabathia (35),
NYY ($30.0 Mil 2016 and option buyout)
J. Lester (31), CHC ($28.0 Mil from 2016-2020)
J. Verlander (32),
DET ($28.0 Mil from 2016-2019)
M. Trout (
24),
LAA ($27.9 Mil from 2016-2020)
A. Pujols (35),
LAA ($27.5 Mil from 2016-2021)
F. Hernandez (29),
SEA ($26.9 Mil from 2016-2019)
G. Stanton (25), MIA ($26.4 Mil from 2016-
2027)
Z. Greinke (31),
LAD ($25.7 Mil from 2016-2018)
C. Hamels (31),
TEX ($25.5 Mil from 2016-2018)
J. Votto (32),
CIN ($24.8 MIL from 2016-2023)
M. Cain (31),
SFG ($24.6 Mil from 2016-2017)
R. Cano (32),
SEA ($24.0 Mil from 2016-2023)
P. Fielder (31),
TEX ($24.0 Mil from 2016-2020)
Y. Reyes (32), COL ($24.0 Mil from 2016-2018)
T. Tulowitzki (30),
TOR ($23.5 Mil from 2016-2019)
M. Teixeira (35),
NYY $23.1 Mil for 2016)
J. Mauer (32), MIN ($23.0 Mil from 2016-2018)
H. Ramirez (31),
BOS ($22.8 Mil from 2016-2018)
A. Gonzalez (33),
LAD ($22.2 Mil from 2016-2018)
M. Tanaka (
26),
NYY ($22.2 Mil from 2016-2020)
J. Ellsbury (32)
NYY ($22.1 Mil from 2016-2020
M. Kemp (31),
SDP (21.8 Mil from 2016-2019)
J. Shields (33),
SDP ($21.7 Mil from 2016-2018)
B. Posey (
28),
SFG ($21.7 Mil from 2016-2021)
C. Crawford (34),
LAD ($21.7 Mil from 2016-2017)
J. Werth (36),
WSN ($21.6 Mil from 2016-2017)
H. Bailey (29),
CIN ($21.5 Mil from 2016-2019)
A. Rodriguez (40),
NYY ($21.0 Mil from 2016-2017)
R. Braun (31), MIL ($21.0 Mil from 2016-2020)
R. Porcello (
26),
BOS ($20.6 Mil from 2016-2019)
C.J. Wilson (34),
LAA ($20.5 Mil for 2016)
S. Choo (33),
TEX ($20.4 Mil from 2016-2020)
J. Weaver (32),
LAA ($20.2 Mil for 2016)
Fr. Freeman (
26), ATL ($20.1 Mil from 2016-2021)
D. Wright (32), NYM ($20.0 Mil from 2016-2018)
A. Wainwright (34), STL ($19.5 Mil from 2016-2018)
R. Martin (32),
TOR ($20.0 Mil from
2017-2019)
D. Price (30) Free Agent
The average age of a player signing his first extension or going Free Agent is 29-30. Unless, of course, they are star players and they entered earlier than 24. And this are usually the ones that are getting the long contracts with big monies.
McCutchen is 28 and signed an extension when he was 25 before he starting hitting .300 BAVG. Although he is signed through 2018 with club option, PIT risks losing him if they don't re-sign him to an extended contract.