Royals agree to four-year, $82 million contract extension with Salvador Pérez

The Royals have agreed to a four-year, $82 million contract extension with All-Star catcher Salvador Pérez, according to multiple reports. The 30-year old was in the last year of a five-year, $52.5 million deal and was eligible to be a free agent after the season. The new deal will pay him an average of $20.5 million per season and would be the largest deal in club history. It also includes a $13.5 million club option in 2026, when Salvy will turn 36 years old in May.

Pérez is a six-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove winner who was named MVP of the 2015 World Series. He has been in the Royals organization since signing with them as a teenager in 2006, and has played in 979 career games with them, hitting .269/.300/.449 with 152 career home runs and 24.2 WAR, according to Baseball-Reference. He missed the entire 2019 season due to an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery, which usually is a career setback for catchers. Perez returned to put up the best numbers of his career, hitting .333/3.53/.633 with 11 home runs in 37 games, earning the Silver Slugger Award for the third time.

The Royals recently signed third baseman Hunter Dozier to a four-year contract extension and there has been one report that they are talking about a deal with shortstop Adalberto Mondesi.