The are working to lock up another member of their core. The defending World Series champions have opened contract extension talks with shortstop
Craig Biggio Jersey , . Swanson, a first-time All-Star this season, grew up outside Atlanta and is scheduled to become a free agent after this season. The No. 1 pick in the 2015 Draft, Swanson was sent to his hometown Braves in the le s than six months after the selected him with that top pick. It has proven to be one of the most lopsided trades in recent memory. Miller immediately flamed out with Arizona while Swanson has been a reliably solid and occasionally spectacular shortstop. ATL SS #7 BA0.292R76HR16RBI66SB15 Swanson, 28, enters Friday with a .292/.347/.455 batting line and 16 home runs in 120 games. He started the season very slowly, striking out 36 times in his first 25 games, but he's rebounded to hit .309/.361/.478 with 15 home runs in his last 94 games. Add in splendid defense and Swanson has been a 4.6 WAR player in 2022, a top 20 mark in MLB. Here is what you need to know about the Braves, Swanson, and a potential extension as he approaches free agency. Earlier this week the Braves signed rookie center fielder to an . He is the third Braves player to sign a long-term contract this year, joining () and (). Riley's contract is the largest in franchise history. With Harris locked up, Atlanta now has five players signed through at least 2025, with several signed well beyond that. This is what the Braves have done under GM Alex Anthopoulos. They sign their best players long-term and Swanson is next on the list. Here are those five players and their contract extension details: Date signedContract termsYears coveredOF April 2, 2019 8 years, $100 million 2019-26 plus club options for 2027-28 2B April 11, 2019 7 years, $35 million 2019-25 plus club options for 2026-27 1B Matt Olson
George Springer Jersey March 14, 2022 8 years, $168 million 2022-29 plus club option for 2030 3B Austin Riley Aug. 1, 2022 10 years, $212 million 2023-32 plus club option for 2033 OF Michael Harris II Aug. 16, 2022 8 years, $72 million 2023-30 plus club options for 2031-32 Acua and Harris have the second and third largest contracts ever given to a player with le s than one year of service time, behind only 's 11-year, $182 million deal with the . Atlanta's commitments to those five players will max out in 2025, when they'll earn a combined $76 million. That looks to be a ma sive bargain for the club given their current production. It should be noted that, if the Braves do manage to sign Swanson to an extension, they will have their entire infield locked up long-term. Shortstop and top prospect , who was recently called up to fill in at second base while Albies is injured, could become trade bait in that case, or he could move into a -esque super utility role. Gri som would be a candidate to step in at shortstop should Swanson sign elsewhere as a free agent. Last offseason's free agent shortstop cla s was the best ever in terms of projected future WAR and those contracts all serve as a po sible framework for a Swanson extension. Here are last winter's notable shortstop contracts: ContractAverage annual value , 10 years, $325 million $32.5 million , Rangers 7 years, $175 million $25 million , 6 years, $140 million $23.3 million , 6 years, $140 million $23.3 million , 3 years, $105.3 million $35.1 million Ironically, the youngest and best all-around player in that group received the smallest contract. That said, Correa's contract with the Twins includes opt-outs after each year, . The structure of the contract means it is e sentially a one-year, $35.1 million deal with a two-year, $70.2 million insurance policy in case of injury or poor performance. It seems unlikely Swanson would go the Correa
Justin Verlander Jersey route with a one-year contract only because most players seek the largest contract when they reach free agency. Correa
Nolan Ryan Jersey is an outlier. Swanson is having a career year and this offseason figures to be his best chance at a ma sive long-term deal. He's unlikely to get Seager money. Swanson's great but he's not a $300 million player. It's more likely his next deal falls in the Bez and Story range, or maybe Semien. Of course, those contracts offer several cautionary tales. Bez has been a disaster with Detroit, slashing .227/.269/.378 with 1.2 WAR. Semien has been better of late but is still hitting .234/.294/.398 with 2.5 WAR overall, . Story owns a .221/.289/.423 line and 2.2 WAR around injuries. Correa (.272/.354/.436 and 3.2 WAR) and Seager (.252/.329/.470 and 3.8 WAR) have been worth the money this year.Would Swanson take a hometown discount? That is unclear. Generally speaking, when a player gets this close to free agency, they test the market just to see what's out there. And once the player is out in free agency, bidding wars happen, and the price goes up. As we saw last offseason with , the Braves are willing to make generous offers to core players, but they won't go beyond what they consider reasonable. Fantasy Baseball Today Newsletter Your Cheat Code To Fantasy Baseball You're destined to gain an edge over your friends with advice from the award-winning FBT crew. I agree to receive the
Andy Pettitte Jersey "Fantasy Baseball Today Newsletter" and marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers), and other information from CBS Sports and the Paramount family of companies. By pre sing sign up, I confirm that I have read and agree to the . Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe. Thanks for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox. Sorry! There was an error proce sing your subscription. Swanson is eligible to receive -- and almost certainly will receive -- the qualifying offer after the season. , and, as a result, the qualifying offer and free agent compensation systems will remain in place through the life of the new collective bargaining agreement (until 2026). The qualifying offer is a one-year contract at the average of the top 125 salaries in baseball, which figures to be in the $20 million range this offseason. If Swanson rejects the qualifying offer, which he would likely do in search of a larger contract, Atlanta would receive a compensation draft pick after the first round if he signs elsewhere. The team that signs Swanson would forfeit draft picks and international bonus money, with the exact penalty determined by their revenue sharing and competitive balance tax status. It's important to note receiving and rejecting the qualifying offer would not nece sarily close the door on Swanson's tenure with the Braves.