Athletics agree to $60M, 5-year contract with slugger Brent Rooker, AP source says

By: Josh Dubow, The Associated Press Posted: 1:06 AM CST Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025 Last Modified: 1:06 AM CST Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025

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The Athletics have agreed to a $60 million, five-year contract with slugger Brent Rooker, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Monday night.

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The Athletics have agreed to a $60 million, five-year contract with slugger Brent Rooker, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Monday night.

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The Athletics have agreed to a $60 million, five-year contract with slugger Brent Rooker, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press on Monday night.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not been announced.

The deal includes a $22 million vesting option for the 2030 season and escalators that could increase the value to $92 million over six seasons. Rooker was set to swap proposed arbitration salaries with the A’s on Thursday. He also would have been eligible for arbitration after the 2025 and 2026 seasons, and could have become a free agent following the 2027 World Series.

FILE - Oakland Athletics designated hitter Brent Rooker rounds the bases after hitting a home run during a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Aug. 30, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)

The new deal keeps Rooker signed through 2029, when the team is planning to be in Las Vegas. The A’s left Oakland after last season and are set to play the next three seasons in a minor league park in West Sacramento, California. The club says its new stadium in Las Vegas is expected to be ready in 2028.

The 30-year-old Rooker has been one of the best players for the A’s since joining the team in 2023. He batted .293 with 39 homers, 112 RBIs and a .927 OPS last season, winning a Silver Slugger award at designated hitter and finishing 10th in AL MVP voting. He hit 30 homers with an .817 OPS in his first season with the A’s, making the AL All-Star squad.

The agreement with Rooker is the latest big move for the A’s this offseason. The team previously signed pitcher Luis Severino to a $67 million, three-year contract — the largest deal in franchise history. The right-hander can opt out and become a free agent again after the 2026 season.

Severino’s arrival was followed by the acquisitions of third baseman Gio Urshela and left-hander Jeffrey Springs.

For the first time since the current collective bargaining agreement began in 2022, the A’s are to receive 100% of the amount due under the revenue sharing formula. If a team’s luxury tax payroll is not at least 150% of what it receives in revenue sharing, the burden of proof in a grievance alleging violation of revenue sharing rules would shift to the club from the players’ association.