Between Jaime Garcia, Allen Craig, Matt Carpenter, Kolten Wong, Carlos Martinez, and Stephen Piscotty, the Cardinals agreed to commitments lasting a combined 31 years plus an additional eight through club options. While the total $220.5 million in guaranteed salary may seem like a grand sum of money, that’s only $3.5 million more than what the Red Sox will be paying David Price alone for seven seasons.
Such contracts have become commonplace in the Gateway City. A pre-arbitration player coming off a promising campaign gets inked to a long-term deal ensuring them financial security for life.