New York Yankees veteran first baseman Anthony Rizzo made the expected move of not exercising his player option for the 2023 season, worth $16 million.
He is not losing $16 million: he is making sure he gets a long-term deal to keep mashing in MLB, gaining more financial stability.
Rizzo was very good in 2022 and earned a multi-year contract: he will seek one from the Yankees, but if they don’t meet his demands, he should get one from another franchise.
The Yankees, however, are making sure to get some compensation should he leave via a free agency.
“Yankees are expected to give Anthony Rizzo the $19.65M qualifying offer. Ofcourse. Terrific two-way player,” MLB insider Jon Heyman tweeted.
Yankees are expected to give Anthony Rizzo the $19.65M qualifying offer. Ofcourse. Terrific two-way player.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 8, 2022
The Yankees Won’t Be Losing Rizzo For Nothing
The qualifying offer means the Yankees would receive compensatory draft picks for the loss of Rizzo should he decline the QO and sign elsewhere.
If he accepts the qualifying offer, Rizzo would play out the 2023 season under a $19.65 million salary.
Since he is looking for a multi-year pact, he is likely to decline it, ensuring the Yankees don’t lose him for nothing.
The $19.65 million is worth the mean salary of MLB’s 125 highest-paid players.
Had MLB and the Players Association agreed to the international draft, the QO system would have been eliminated.
Since it didn’t happen, it will remain in place until the expiration of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement in 2026.
Since Rizzo has never received a qualifying offer previously in his career and spent the entire 2022 campaign with the Yankees, he is eligible.
The first baseman had a great season, with 32 home runs and a .224/.338/.480 slash line with New York.
