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The Robinson Cano story took us for a little bit of a roller coaster ride over the past day or so. First, it was reported that the All-Star second baseman had a nine-year offer on the table from Seattle. Then, it appeared that negotiations broke off because Jay-Z was asking for too much money.
This morning, though, Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes is reporting that the Mariners and Cano have agreed to a deal. It's 10 years long and is for $240 million.
If this 10-year deal works out well, it will be the first time that has happened. Back in 2008, the Yankees signed Alex Rodriguez to a 10-year, $275 million dollar deal only to see the star third baseman hampered by injuries and suspensions five years deep. Rodriguez at least helped the Yankees win a World Series title in 2009, which some would argue makes the whole deal worth it.
If Cano is able to take Seattle the distance in the first year of his deal, it would be a pretty big shock. The Mariners won just 71 games last year and are at best the third-most talented team in a division headlined by Oakland and Texas.
The AL West is also home to another 10-year contract, this one signed by Albert Pujols prior to the 2012 season. Since signing the deal, Pujols has been a shadow of his former self, with just 4.4 fWAR accumulated over the past two seasons.
The scary part about the Pujols drop-off is that he was a remarkably consistent player during his time with St. Louis. The same can be said with Cano and the Yankees, and that's probably why Seattle deemed him worthy of such a long contract.
While Cano is sure to decline over the length of the deal, it's hard to argue with four consecutive season with at least 5.0 fWAR, five consecutive seasons with a slugging percentage over .500, and seven straight seasons with more than 600 plate appearances.
The only problem is that Cano just turned 31 years old, so we don't know how long he'll be able to keep up this production. The Mariners are betting that they'll be competitive before the magic disappears.
