Details of Braun contract
For those keeping score, Ryan Braun’s average salary in his new contract is indeed the second-highest ever for an outfielder, even after the deal is discounted for deferrals.
The value of Braun’s five-year extension with the Brewers drops from $105 million to $101,823,206 when factoring in the $16.5 million in deferred money without interest, according to the players’ union.
By that calculation, Braun’s average annual value (AAV) from 2016 to ’20 would be $20.4 million. Carl Crawford, who had been second to Manny Ramirez in AAV for an outfielder, is at $20.3 million in his seven-year, $142 million free-agent contract with the Red Sox.
The Braun contract also includes a $15 million club option for 2021. The value of the option can increase in a variety of ways:
• $5 million if Braun is MVP in 2020, $3 million if he finishes second through fifth, $2 million if he finishes sixth through 10th.
• $1 million for winning a Silver Slugger or Gold Glove award in 2020.
• $1 million for either attaining 1,500 combined plate appearances from 2018 to ’20 or 1,000 plate appearances in ’19 and ’20.
The maximum increase of the option is $5 million. The Brewers will pay Braun a $4 million buyout if they do not exercise the option. However, Braun can void the option and forfeit the buyout.
One other contract detail: Braun’s $10 million signing bonus is payable between April 2012 and April 2015.
— Ken Rosenthal
