The best player in baseball is closing in on the richest contract in the history of North American sports. Mike Trout, the center fielder for the Los Angeles Angels, is finalizing a contract extension that will be worth about $430 million and keep him with the team through 2030, according to multiple news media reports. The Los Angeles Times reported that Trout would be paid $36 million per year for 10 years, starting in 2021, with no opt-outs in the deal. However the deal is calculated — either an additional $360 million over 10 years or the Angels’ total commitment of about $430 million for the next 12 years — Trout has eclipsed the previous record for guaranteed money: the 13-year, $330 million deal Bryce Harper signed this month with the Philadelphia Phillies. The deal also establishes Trout as the highest-paid baseball player on an annual basis, topping the $34.4 million Zack Greinke is earning from the Arizona Diamondbacks on a six-year, $206.5 million contract signed in December 2015.

Source: New York Times March 19, 2019 16:20 UTC