#6: Alex Rodriguez. Texas Rangers. $252,000,000
Alex Rodriguez was the first player to ever get a contract worth $250,000,000. On December 11th, 2000, the Rangers signed him to a 10-year deal worth $252,000,000.
Forget $250,000,000, he was the first to sign a $200,000,000 deal period. Before this contract was signed, the biggest contract in baseball history belonged to Manny Ramirez which was just $160 million. That contract was made just the day before A-Rod’s one.
He only completed seven years of that contract with the Rangers and Yankees before signing a new one. During that seven-year period, he hit .304 with more than 300 home runs and 1,000 hits.
#5: Nolan Arenado. Colorado Rockies. $260,000,000
First Nolan Arenado avoided arbitration with a $26,000,000 for the 2019 season. Then the Rockies turned around and said we don’t want to wait a year for you to hit free agency and they gave him a crazy extension.
On February 26th, 2018, the Rockies extension for Arenado was worth $260,000,000 over eight seasons with an opt-out following the 2021 season.
AAV-wise, it’s the largest deal ever for a position player as its worth $32,500,000 per year. It was a well-deserved extension for Arenado who’s been averaging nearly 40 home runs and over 100 RBI’s a year. He will only be 30 when he has the option to opt-out.
#4: Alex Rodriguez. New York Yankees. $275,000,000.
Rodriguez failed to complete his old contract because he signed a new one and this one was even better. After a season in which he hit 54 home runs and drove in 156, he agreed to a 10-year deal worth $275,000,000 on December 13th, 2007.
He only played for eight years due to a number of reasons but tacked on an extra 800+ hits and 150+ home runs. During the duration of his second mega-contract, he managed to finish his career with more than 3,100 hits and a whopping 696 home runs.