How the Francisco Lindor contract compares to other shortstops in dollars, AAV, and future outlook

The $341 million deal over ten seasons Francisco Lindor signed with the New York Mets made him the highest-paid shortstop in MLB. This temporarily changed only recently with Carlos Correa getting a 13-year contract from the San Francisco Giants worth $350 million. Correa is now a teammate of Lindor's and a third baseman. His $315 million deal from them pushes him behind Lindor, too.

Even if the Giants kept Correa, your quick math skills would be correct. Lindor is getting paid a higher AAV than Correa's voided contract. He is taking in an AAV of $34.1 million while Correa would have gotten over $26.9 million per season on average.

Shortstops have been getting paid huge bucks with three of them (let's include Correa in this number) getting over $250 million this offseason alone. There are now 10 MLB shortstops with contracts totaling over $100 million. How does Lindor’s compare?

The Mets signed Francisco Lindor to a high AAV but a deal with other benefits

Lindor’s AAV is the highest among shortstops. Only Corey Seager, who signed last winter, topped $30 million. His AAV of $32.5 million from his 10-year contract worth $325 million most closely resembles what the Mets paid their star shortstop. Each signed at age 27 and for 10 years.

To find a reason to like the Lindor contract most, it’s the length and age of the players when it first began which makes it look its prettiest.

Lindor is signed through his age 37 season. It’s definitely a point in his career when things will have already started to decline. Compared to the length of the other days, it seems like the Mets are paying their way out of not having to suffer through the agony of a fading star on the roster earning a lot of money.

Trea Turner signed this offseason at age 29 on an 11-year deal which means he’ll be over-the-hill by the time it ends. Correa’s contract with the Mets, at age 28, is for 12 seasons and takes him all the way to 40. The same goes for Xander Bogaerts whose 11-year contract at age 30 will also bring him into his 40s.

Maybe most ill-fated of all is the deal which seemed to push Lindor’s total contract as high as it went. It’s no coincidence that he got $341 million and Fernando Tatis Jr. had signed for $340 million. His 14-year deal, signed at age 22, will last until he is 36. Given his off-field injury and PED suspension, it’s off to a horrendous start.

The other $100 million shortstops are Trevor Story, Javier Baez, Wander Franco, and Dansby Swanson. Franco’s deal is an 11-year one and a way for the Tampa Bay Rays to lock up a young star early. He has yet to fully become the star many of us believe he will become.

Many of these deals are in the very early stages with four of them just getting signed this offseason. Maybe it’s just a coincidence but every player did struggle in the first year with their new team: Lindor, Seager, Story, and Baez being the free agents who have already played. With Lindor, we should remember his first year on the big contract was in 2022 when he looked a lot better.

These 10 MLB shortstops raised the expectations for how much a young shortstop can get paid. The sample, so far at least, isn’t enough for us to say if Lindor becomes the best bargain.

Of course, this does require a championship or two along the way.