“Of course, I would like to stay here for the rest of my career. But it’s out of my hands.”
That comment was made by Orioles outfielder Anthony Santander when he met with the media a few days ago in Toronto.
As O’s fans are well aware, Santander is set to become a free agent at season’s end, and any organization could try to sign him. Tony confirmed that he and the Oriole front office have not had any in-season contract talks.
Regardless of this, Santander did not shy away from the fact that he would like to stay with the organization that gave him a chance after being selected in the 2017 Rule 5 Draft.
“I want to stay here. This is the team that gave me the opportunity to play in the big leagues. I like where we are right now. We are a really good team. This team is about to get in a World Series soon. Hopefully, this year.”
– Anthony Santander on wanting to stay in the Orioles organization
After a slow month and a half to begin the 2024 season, Santander has quickly become the biggest power threat for the O’s, smacking 34 home runs so far this year, good for second in all of baseball.
The 2024 All-Star is on a pace to hit 48 homers and drive in 110 runs. Needless to say, Tony has picked a great time to have his best overall campaign during his walk year.
We all know that most clubs will be looking into Santander, who will be heading into his age 30 season, this winter. But what exactly will it take for the Orioles to re-sign the fan favorite outfielder?
Well, the first step has already been completed. With the O’s new ownership group led, of course, by David Rubenstein, the organization will be willing to increase payroll and go spend money that previous ownership was simply unwilling to do.
The Orioles will almost surely issue Santander a qualifying offer, and he will just as surely reject that one-year offer in search of a long-term deal, so the O’s would land a compensatory draft pick if Tony signed elsewhere.
However, Rubenstein already okayed a modest payroll increase to fund the Orioles’ trade deadline moves, and GM Mike Elias figures to have considerably more money to work with as the front office figures out the best route to sustaining and building on its core of young talent.
Since Rubenstein only officially took over the club last spring, this offseason represents a new era for the Orioles in terms of how the front office will approach trades, free agent signings and the possibility of retaining productive stars like Santander.
Now, the question turns to how many years for how many millions of dollars.
As mentioned earlier, Santander will be entering his age 30 season, and you could argue that he’s in the midst of his prime. You can also expect him to have a handful of high-end productive seasons still ahead of him.
With that being said, it’s unlikely Santander will receive any deal past five years. Realistically, he will likely get offers for three to four years, with the possibility of an option or two included.
Santander is making $11.7 million this season, which is a $4 million raise from his 2023 earnings. With the production we’ve seen from both sides of Tony’s game in 2024, he’s shown that he’s a multi-tool, middle of the lineup player that can’t easily be replaced.
The Venezuelan native has already surpassed his previous career-high in home runs (33) and will almost certainly do the same with RBIs (95). Those facts alone will propel Santander past the $15 million per year mark.
With the Orioles looking to compete for multiple World Series Championships over the next decade, they could make an offer to keep Santander apart of the organization for most of those contending years.
PREDICTION: 4-year, $80 million
Santander has proved this year that he’s good for 30+ home runs and 90+ RBIs every season, which certainly makes him a $20 million per year player.
While he might not be in the elite category Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge and Juan Soto occupy, Santander has become one of baseball’s most underappreciated and underrated players.
Whether he earns his payday from the Orioles or another organization, Santander went from being a Rule 5 “try it and see what happens” player to formidable slugger in his time in Baltimore.
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