Mike Trout signs six-year extension with Angels

Outfielder Mike Trout has signed a six-year contract extension on Friday with the Los Angeles Angels. The extension is worth $144.5 million and will kick in following the 2014 season, which Trout will make $1 million. He becomes a free agent again just before his age-29 season, when he is still in his prime. He could get his huge deal then. 

It seems that the negotiating process did not take long. The Angels initial offer to Trout was over six-years and worth $140 million, and after Trout countered with $153 million, they agreed upon the extension that he signed on Friday. This deal is the second-largest for any player with less than three years of service time (Buster Posey: eight years, $167 million). Nonetheless, Trout's deal tops Posey's in average annual value by about $4 million. 

Trout is one of the best (if not the best) players in all of the Major Leagues. In his two years, seventy days of service time, Trout has been to two All Star games, won two Silver Sluggers, was the American League Rookie of the Year, and has finished second in the MVP voting twice. 

In 2013, Mike Trout was the anchor in the Los Angeles Angels lineup. In 157 games, the Millville, New Jersey native hit a triple-slash line of .323/.432/.557 with 27 home runs and 97 RBI in 716 plate appearances (179 OPS+). Trout led the American League in walks (110), as his OBP took a 33 point jump from his Rookie of the Year campaign in 2012.

The advanced metrics prove that Trout could have easily beaten out Miguel Cabrera for the MVP last season, posting a 8.9 WAR (Baseball-Reference) and a 9.7 oWAR. However, the dWAR statistics wasn't as favorable, finishing out at a -0.9 mark.

Trout's career has been a great one. In 336 games, he has posted a .314/.404/.544 triple-slash line with 62 home runs and 196 RBI in 1,490 plate appearances. In 2012, along with his 30 home run power, Trout also led the American League in stolen bases (49). The double-threat, along with some average to above average defense, could make Trout one of the best players baseball has seen in a long time. 

Although the deal is considered a team friendly deal, Trout still has not been in the Major Leagues long. He will still get to cash in on his next deal. He hits the free agent market in 2020, and will almost surely be in his prime then. Trout's deal helps get the Angels back into contention, but also keeps in mind that he could still get paid a lot of money on his next contract. Hopefully, we will just get to watch some more great years of Mike Trout.