San Diego Padres: Wil Myers contract extension remains troublesome

The future of the San Diego Padres does not look too bright. Unlike other teams who have gone through major rebuilds, the Padres do not have an excessive amount of minor league talent.

One way to reload would have been by trading Wil Myers. Unfortunately, the contract extension he signed with San Diego will likely prevent them from moving him.

When the Padres decided to ink Myers to an extension this past January, they made a statement. He was the first young player they locked up long-term in a period of attempting to clean the payroll of several bad contracts. They are still paying a portion of those with several million dollars still owed to Matt Kemp, Melvin Upton, James Shields and a few others.

Financially, the Padres are still healing. More than half of the payroll is going toward players no longer within the organization. In time, this will change.

The specifics of Myers’ contract include a total of $4.5 million this season and next, another $5.5 million in 2019, and a lot more in the next three seasons that follow. From 2020-2022, Myers will earn $22.5 million annually. His deal also includes a team option for 2023 which would pay him a total of $20 million.

If things go south, the Padres do have an option for a $1 million buyout for the last season. It’s a safeguard against what is a risky contract for a largely unproven player.

The money owed to Myers is not the problem with the Padres. The issue is this team has not developed a star in their minor league system for some time. Even Myers was acquired in the blockbuster three-team deal which cost the Padres Trea Turner and Joe Ross.

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Despite several losing seasons, the Padres have not had any of their first round draft picks pan out. There is still time for someone like Hunter Renfroe, but it’s unlikely he becomes an elite, franchise-changing talent. Turner does have those capabilities and unfortunately it will have to take place while with the Washington Nationals.

By signing Myers to the deal they did, they entrusted him as a core member of the franchise’s future. As an example of how high Myers’ eventual salary will be, it’s the total Yoenis Cespedes and Cole Hamels are making in 2017. Only 14 other players are earning more this season.

When Myers first makes $22.5 million a year in 2020, it will likely rank lower as MLB annual salaries are always going up. Regardless, it’s a big total that should land him in the top 50. Myers is far from being a top 50 player at the moment. In 2020, he has a chance but there is no guarantee.

The most alarming factor is how Myers has not improved over the last season. He’s par for the course statistically in many areas with the biggest change being in his WAR. After 80 games, the future $22.5 million man has been worth just 0.5 WAR. A lot of this has to do with his poor defensive abilities. Now a full-time first baseman, Myers is a defensive liability at 26.

Offensively, Myers is having a below average season this year and striking out more often. He has already fanned 104 times through 342 trips to the plate which comes to a strikeout once in every 3.28 at-bats.

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Knowing Myers may never live up to his contract, the Padres need their prospects to pan out. Otherwise, Myers will become the next San Diego albatross eating up a large part of the payroll on a team headed nowhere.