russell martin contract breakdown, for deal that is now official: 7M, 15M, 20M, 20M, 20M
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) November 18, 2014
One interpretation: there are dumb corporate reasons at Rogers which makes doing it this way please some pencil-pusher. Another interpretation: the Jays plan to do more this season -- really load for bear in a winnable A.L. East -- and got Martin to agree to a backloaded deal to make that happen.
Now, to be less optimistic, one could note that Mark Buehrle and his $19 million come off the books next year and that, barring the team picking up his option for 2016, Jose Bautista’s salary does as well. If one thinks that way, one could conclude that this is just a means of keeping payroll as flat as can possibly be maintained.
But it’s November, so maybe Jays fans can hope a bit more about the team making more moves.
