Colt Keith might be rated in the teens and 20s when it comes to prospects, but the Detroit Tigers are betting that he’ll be a star. And, be one pretty soon.
The Tigers have signed Keith, who has no major league experience, to a six-year, $22.6 million contract. Who says baseball is in financial trouble?
Kieth is an infielder, who plays mostly at third base and some second base, hit .325 with 14 home runs and 50 RBIs in 59 games last year for Double-A Erie then was promoted to Triple-A Toledo on June 26 and batted .287 with 13 home runs and 51 RBIs in 67 games.
Breakdown of Colt Keith’s contract
- 2024: $2.5 million
- 2025: $3.5 million
- 2026: $4 million
- 2027: $4 million
- 2028: $5 million
- 2029: $5 million
- 2030: $10 million club option or $2,642,500 buyout
- 2031: $13 million club option or $1 million buyout
- 2032: $15 million club option or $2 million buyout
So, how unusual is this, signing a player who hasn’t been to the bigs, to a multi-year big-money deal? Not as much as you’d think. Here are some of the other deals like this.
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Where Colt Keith ranks for highest paid MLB prospects
- Jackson Chourio, OF, Milwaukee Brewers, eight years, $82 million (2023)
- Luis Robert, OF, Chicago White Sox, six years, $50 million (2020)
- Eloy Jimenez, OF, Chicago White Sox, six years, $43 million (2019)
- Colt Keith, Inf, Detroit Tigers, six years, $28.6 million (2023)
- Scott Kingery, 2B, Philadelphia Phillies, six years, $24 million (2018)
- Evan White, 1B, Seattle Mariners, six years, $24 million (2019)
- Jon Singleton, 1B, Houston Astros, five years, $10 million (2014)