Shields can opt out of his four-year, $75M deal with Padres after two years, according to a copy of his contract obtained by Fox Sports.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) February 13, 2015
Interesting.
Shields is slated to make “only” $10 million next season and it jumps to $21 million in 2016. If he opted out he’d lose $21 million salaries in 2017 and 2018 and a potential $16 million on a team option for 2019. There’s a $2 million buyout if the team doesn’t exercise the option.
When the 2016 season ends, Shields will be 35. Unless he elevates his game to unexpected heights, it seems highly unlikely that it would make any kind of financial sense for him to opt-out, any kind of deal for him at that point would not likely guarantee him $44 million over those next two years.