The Chicago White Sox have agreed to terms on a four-year, $73 million contract with free agent catcher Yasmani Grandal, the team announced Thursday.
It is the biggest contract in the history of the White Sox franchise. The 31-year-old Grandal will receive $18.25 million per season through 2023.
“He’s such a quality guy,” White Sox president Ken Williams said of Grandal. “And for him to understand our messaging, our goals, our path, and to say, ‘I want to be a part of that and I’m going to commit to it early so we can move on to the next thing heading into the Winter Meetings,’ just shows what kind of character we’re talking about.”
Grandal reportedly turned down a four-year, $60 million offer from the New York Mets last offseason and bet on himself to have a big year. It paid off.
After signing a one-year, $18.25 million contract with the Milwaukee Brewers, the switch-hitting Grandal posted career highs in homers (28) and RBIs (77) and earned his second career All-Star appearance. He walked over 100 times to post a .380 OBP, which ranked first among major league catchers.
His also led all catchers in games played and was second in extra-base hits (56), total bases (240) and RBIs.
“My family and I are very excited and honored to be a part of the Chicago White Sox organization,” Grandal said in a statement. “I loved their professionalism, preparation and vision towards the future. I want to thank them for allowing me to be a part of this process moving forward.”
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James McCann, 29, was the White Sox’s starting catcher last season and was an All-Star for the first time, hitting .273 with 18 home runs and 60 RBIs. He is signed for the 2020 season with a contract that carries a base salary of $4.9 million.
“This was all planned, going back five years ago when we started this and started thinking about this,” Williams said. “We get ourselves in position with our young core and we could augment it with guys like this.
“… Clearly, we’re trying to put ourselves in a window that could very well start next year but extend to the next five to seven years.”
Grandal, who has hit more than 20 homers in each of the past four seasons, has a career .241 batting average with 141 home runs and 416 RBIs over eight seasons with the Brewers, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres.
“Yasmani ranks among the very elite catchers in Major League Baseball today, and we are extremely happy to add a durable and talented player of his caliber to our lineup,” White Sox general manager Rick Hahn said in a statement. “His selectivity at the plate is a real plus offensively, and as a switch hitter, his combination of power and on-base percentage stand out. Yasmani’s defensive abilities, pitch framing and other advanced catching metrics also separate him from others in the game.
“… We foresee him playing an integral role on both the further development of our young pitchers and the continued improvement of our offense as we reach our championship goals.”
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