The A’s have made a point of locking up their core players as they target 2028 for their move to Las Vegas. Over the past 14 months, they’ve signed extensions with Brent Rooker, Lawrence Butler, Tyler Soderstrom and Jacob Wilson. They’re looking to continue that run, as both Martín Gallegos of MLB.com and Mark Anderson of The Associated Press wrote this week that the team could still try to get deals done with Nick Kurtz and Shea Langeliers.
The extensions serve a couple purposes for the A’s. They lock in what could be an elite lineup with less concern among the fanbase about them tearing the roster down the way they did after the 2021 season. They’re largely backloaded deals, which raises the team’s competitive balance payroll (based on annual value) to avoid a revenue sharing grievance without costing as much in salary while they’re playing in Sacramento.
The A’s have increased their short-term spending with Luis Severino signing and trades for Jeffrey Springs and Jeff McNeil, but their projected $139MM luxury tax number is dramatically higher than their actual $88MM estimated 2026 payroll (via RosterResource). The bills will come due down the line, at which point the organization is projecting a revenue spike from their new stadium.
All four of the recent extensions look like nice bits of business for the team — Wilson’s in particular. They could have a tougher time finding agreeable price points with Kurtz and Langeliers. Both have strong leverage, and they’re represented by a pair of agencies that rarely sign extensions. That said, let’s take a look at what kind of prices it might take to get talks rolling.
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