Reports: Mariners sign Cano to $240 million deal
SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners and free agent second baseman Robinson Cano agreed to a 10-year, $240 million contract on Friday, according to multiple media reports.
Contacted by The Associated Press, the Mariners would not confirm any details of a potential deal. The team said Friday morning they will announce if an agreement is “completed and finalized” with the Yankees star.
Cano reportedly met with the Mariners on Thursday.
The 31-year-old Cano is a career .309 hitter with 204 home runs and 822 RBIs in nine seasons with the New York Yankees. He is also one of the top defensive second basemen in the American League and has proved to be durable, playing in a minimum of 159 regular-season games the past seven years.
This past season, Cano played in 160 games and batted .314 with 27 home runs and 107 RBIs.
In the past four seasons, Cano finished among the top six in the AL MVP voting.
The Yankees’ best offer to re-sign Cano was $175 million for seven years. The Mariners reportedly made him a nine-year, $225 million offer when the two sides met Thursday, before adding to it to get the deal done.
It is the third largest contract in major-league history and the same as the one first baseman Albert Pujols signed with Los Angeles Angels after the 2011 season.
Third baseman Alex Rodriguez has the top two contracts in major-league history. He signed a 10-year, $275 million extension with the Yankees in 2007, replacing the 10-year, $252 million deal he signed with the Texas Rangers in 2000.
Cano’s reported deal would be one of the largest in baseball history and a coup for a franchise that’s gone a dozen years since making the postseason. It would bring creditability for the Mariners after striking out in the past in their pursuits of big free agents like Prince Fielder and Josh Hamilton.
