The Yankees, with money burning in their pockets after losing out on Juan Soto, quickly pivoted to Max Fried and handed him the most lucrative contract ever for a left-handed pitcher. New York made sure no team was going to outbid them again; however, one team that was also involved in the negotiations will shock everybody.
According to USA Today Sports Bob Nightengale, the Oakland Athletics were “one of the most aggressive teams” in the pursuit of Max Fried before he inked an eight-year, $218 million contract with the Yankees.
The A’s have notoriously been one of the cheapest organizations in all of sports. There was an entire movie made about it that you might have heard about. But with a potential move to Vegas looming and pressure from Major League Baseball to spend more, they’ve been one of the more aggressive teams early this offseason.
It began when the Athletics signed Luis Severino to a $67 million contract over three years. That’s the largest contract handed out in franchise history, and the fact they were potentially willing to go three times further than that for Max Fried is shocking.
The former Braves ace was long believed to be headed west once he became a free agent, with most pointing at the Dodgers as favorites, while the Angels and Padres remained possibilities. However, nobody mentioned the Athletics as an option. What a wild turn of events that would have been.
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Photo: Jeff Robinson/Icon Sportswire
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