The Eric Hosmer sweepstakes has ended, with the Padres inking him to a front-loaded eight-year contract worth $144 million that includes an opt-out after five years. How did the baseball world react?
In the final stages of the offseason, the Royals were believed to have been willing to offer a deal in the neighborhood of $140 million. The length of the proposed contract — in addition to the final numbers — were unknown on Sunday morning.
Yet at least two factors in the Padres’ contract offer may have swung the pendulum in their favor.