The rebuilding Detroit Tigers have quietly gone 45-40 since May 1 and they locked up one of their veteran leaders on Saturday. The Tigers announced a new two-year contract extension with infielder Jonathan Schoop. The deal is worth $15 million total and includes an opt-out clause after 2022, reports MLB Network's Jon Heyman.
"Jonathan has been a constant professional since joining our clubhouse, and is the exact type of player we want to wear the Olde English 'D,' " Tigers GM Al Avila said in a statement. "His production on the field matches the value of his leadership with all of our players, and we're looking forward to that contribution continuing for the next few seasons. This is a big step towards bringing winning baseball back for our fans, and we know Jonathan will be a big part of that."
Schoop, who will turn only 30 in October, is hitting .289/.333/.468 with 18 home runs in 107 games this season. He's hit .286/.331/.470 with 26 home runs in 151 games with Detroit the past two years, and has been a very productive complementary piece as the Tigers rebuild around young arms Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal.
"Over the last few years I've never been afraid to say that I hope to stay in Detroit, so this is a really exciting day for me," Schoop said in a statement. "I really want to thank (manager) A.J. Hinch, (hitting coach) Scott Coolbaugh and everyone with the Tigers for believing in me and allowing me to be a part of this clubhouse that's grown so much since the start of 2020. On the field, I couldn't be happier to play with this group of guys and for this coaching staff. At the end of the day there was no place I'd rather be than Detroit, and I'm really excited we were able to get a deal done to make that happen."
Given his strong season and Detroit's ongoing rebuild, Schoop was speculated as a trade candidate prior to the trade deadline, though the Tigers opted to keep him and lock him up. Outfielder Riley Greene and corner infielder Spencer Torkelson are the club's top two position player prospects and they should debut no later than next year.
Schoop has played second base most of his career, though he's spent much more time at first base this season. Torkelson has split his time between first and third bases this year, though the consensus is he's a better fit at first. Should he stay there when he reaches the big leagues, Schoop should have no trouble sliding back over to second.
The Tigers signed Schoop to one-year contracts worth $6.1 million (before proration in 2020) and $4.5 million the past two years. This is the first multi-year contract of the nine-year veteran's career, and it's affordable enough to make him an attractive trade chip should the Tigers decide to go that route at some point.
Detroit comes into Saturday in third place in the AL Central at 53-59 despite its strong play the past three months, but the team is finally starting to see progress with its rebuild.
