Oakland Athletics: It is time to extend Matt Olson
The Oakland Athletics have a burgeoning star in Matt Olson. The time to extend him is now.
On Monday, the Oakland Athletics decided to renew Matt Olson‘s contract for the 2020 campaign. In doing so, Olson will be paid a whopping $603,500 for the coming year, a raise of just $30,000 over his 2019 salary.
That salary is a pittance considering what Olson has done for the A’s over his career. A two time Gold Glove winner at first, he has become a feared power hitter in the lineup. In just two and a half seasons, he has produced a .254/.343/.512 batting line, hitting 89 homers and 62 doubles. Olson certainly deserves far more than he will earn for the coming season.
The Athletics had made an overture to increase Olson’s pay before. They had engaged in extension talks before, although those discussions broke down during the 2019 campaign. It is time to begin those discussions once more.
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At this point, Olson will be eligible for arbitration after the season, the first of his three trips through the process. And, as long as Olson continues to develop, he will become more and more expensive, a hindrance to the A’s budget.
But that does not need to be the case. The A’s had previously stated their intention to identify core members of the roster, with the intention of locking those players into long term extensions. Not only would this provide Oakland with cost certainty moving forward, but it would also provide the organization with the framework they need to have a sustainable contender.
That is why it is important to lock in players like Olson before arbitration. By not only providing him with a raise over his renewed contract, the A’s may well end up with a bargain in the latter years of the deal. Considering that Olson is on the cusp of stardom, it is a move the A’s need to make.
The Oakland Athletics renewed Matt Olson’s contract for 2020. While it will save them some money this year, that renewal should be the beginning stages of extension discussions.