LAS VEGAS (AP) — The setting of the Athletics' news conference Tuesday was at least as notable as the reason why the parties were there.
Tyler Soderstrom's signing ceremony was the first such event at the A's future Las Vegas home, the latest step in the club's scheduled move in a little more than two years.
His $86 million, seven-year contract is the richest extension in team history. The deal includes a club option for an eighth season and bonus provisions
that could increase the contract's value to $131 million.
“This is exciting for us,” general manager David Forst said. “This keeps him here with the A's well into our time here in Las Vegas starting in 2028. A huge part of what we're doing right now is putting that roster together.”
After leaving Oakland, the A's recently completed their first season in West Sacramento, California, where they plan to remain until the move to Las Vegas.
A tight-spending organization in the past, the A's have signed some head-turning deals going back to last offseason. Those include a $60 million, five-year contract with designated hitter/outfielder Brent Rooker and a $65.5 million, seven-year deal with outfielder Lawrence Butler. Manager Mark Kotsay signed an extension that takes him through 2028 with a club option for 2029.
Then this offseason, the A's not only extended Soderstrom, they traded with the New York Mets for veteran second baseman Jeff McNeil.
First baseman Nick Kurtz was named AL Rookie of the Year and shortstop Jacob Wilson finished second in the voting.
“We have a time frame that we see in front of us with this group that can be really special,” Kotsay said. "We went through a little bit of that phase — I did as a coach — in ‘16, ’17, ‘18 with a special group we weren't able to keep in place. Now we have that same type of group, and we're making every effort possible to keep these guys for an extended period of time, to bring them here in Vegas.
“It's my job to get us to win and win prior to us getting to this ballpark. I think you're seeing David put this group together on a daily basis to give us that chance, and it's going to be exciting.”
The A's have assembled a dynamic young roster that showed it also could overcome adversity last season. After going through a stretch of 20 losses in 21 games, they then went 53-46 the rest of the way.
Soderstrom said he thinks the team could make a playoff push next season.
“There's so much potential that we have,” he said. “Words can't explain how excited I am to be a part of that going forward.”
Soderstrom toured the construction site on Tuesday for the $2 billion, 33,000-capacity domed stadium, standing in left field and where home plate will sit. He later went to the A's Experience Center, which includes team memorabilia and a model of the ballpark, and took part in the news conference.
The A's took him with the 26th overall pick in the 2020 amateur draft. Soderstrom played his first full major league season this year and batted .276 with 25 home runs and 93 RBIs.
Kotsay said he was especially impressed with Soderstrom's willingness and ability to move to left field after playing first base and catcher.
When Kotsay asked Soderstrom what he thought about shifting to left, the player responded by saying, “I'm the best athlete on the team. I don't have a problem.”
Soderstrom played so well in the outfield he became a Gold Glove finalist.
A's management could have waited to pursue a long-term deal with Soderstrom, but opted instead to avoid salary arbitration, which he would have been eligible for after next season. Soderstrom would have been eligible for free agency following the 2029 season.
“The idea of taking this group of young players and locking them up into a new ballpark has been something we've talked about for a long time,” Forst said. “We were able to get Brent Rooker and Lawrence Butler signed last year, Tyler now, and there are ongoing conversations with others. So this is kind of the blueprint for how we want to do this and how we want to open the ballpark in '28.”
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb
