Atlanta Braves lock up Craig Kimbrel for four years

Kimbrel against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the ninth inning of game two of the National League divisional series playoff baseball game at Turner Field. (Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports)

First, it was Freddie Freeman. Just yesterday, Julio Teheran. Today, it’s Craig Kimbrel.

Yep, the guy many consider as baseball’s best closer was on the receiving end of a four-year, $42MM deal with an option for a fifth. If the Braves elect to pick up that option, the deal could them be worth as much as $58MM.

[RELATED: Atlanta Braves Ink Julio Teheran To Glorious Six-Year Extension]

The breakdown on Kimbrel’s deal:
– $1MM signing bonus
– yearly salary: $7MM (2014), $9MM (2015), $11MM (2016), $13MM (2017)
– option year worth $13MM or $1MM buyout
– incentives for All-Star teams, Cy Young

You could say the Braves have taken on a spending spree of their own, but their spree has been aimed at locking up younger talent that could be deemed as franchise cornerstones. Granted, the money involved isn’t near on the level as the what the New York Yankees have spent, but the investment appears to be a little more sound.

With the Kimbrel deal, the past couple of weeks have seen the Braves award almost $250MM in deals (including all incentives) to players. This is according to a tweet from David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

And I don’t think the Braves done in trying to work out a longer deal with outfielder Jason Heyward. Freeman, Teheran, Kimbrel and Heyward are definitely building blocks.

(CTTP hat tip to Matt Snyder from Eye on Baseball)