Pirates sign 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes to 8-year, $70 million deal as franchise cornerstone
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The Pittsburgh Pirates made Ke’Bryan Hayes their franchise cornerstone just hours before first pitch on Opening Day, reaching an agreement on an eight-year, $70 million contract that is the richest in club history.
The deal, first reported by MLB insider Robert Murray and confirmed by the Tribune-Review, includes a club option for a ninth year for the 25-year-old third baseman. Hayes is the only Pirates player signed beyond the 2022 season.
BREAKING: Ke’Bryan Hayes and the Pittsburgh Pirates are in agreement on a eight-year, $70 million contract extension that includes a club option for a ninth season, according to sources familiar with the situation.
— Robert Murray (@ByRobertMurray) April 7, 2022
The Pirates are expected to make a formal announcement of the deal before Tuesday’s home opener against the Chicago Cubs at PNC Park.
“Nothing’s official yet,” Hayes told AT&T SportsNet on Thursday before the season opener against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium. “I still have a job to do today, so that’s my No. 1 priority. But I’m just thankful for this opportunity, for them believing in me for a long-term deal. I’m very committed, as I’m sure they are committed for this partnership. I’m just excited to get back to work this year.”
It surpasses the six-year, $60 million contract the Pirates gave to catcher Jason Kendall in November 2000, an attempt by the club to change its direction after three consecutive NL Central last-place finishes and the narrative that it won’t spend to sign players to long-term deals. Hayes had turned down contract extension offers in each of the past two years.
“To be in that opportunity as such a young kid, all the hard work that you put in, that’s what you live for and play for,” Hayes told AT&T SportsNet. “I can’t really put it into words right now, just on the spot.”
The Pirates faced public backlash this spring for taking All-Star center fielder Bryan Reynolds to arbitration over a difference of $675,000 after Reynolds asked for $4.9 million and they countered with $4.25 million.
Hayes is the latest young, promising Pirates player to sign a long-term deal in the past decade. The key is whether he will stay with the Pirates until its completion. If the Pirates exercise the club option in 2030, Hayes won’t reach free agency until age 34.
The Pirates signed center fielder Andrew McCutchen to a six-year, $51.5 million contract in March 2012, after the first of his five consecutive All-Star appearances and a year before he would win NL MVP and lead the Pirates to three straight wild-card playoff berths.
Two years later, in March 2014, they signed outfielder Starling Marte for six years at $31 million with two club options. In April 2016, they signed outfielder Gregory Polanco to a five-year, $35 million contract with two club options.
The Pirates traded McCutchen to the San Francisco Giants in January 2018 in the final guaranteed year of his contract, sent Marte to the Arizona Diamondbacks in January 2020 with two years remaining and released Polanco last August, in his final guaranteed year.
The son of 14-year major league veteran Charlie Hayes, who played for the Pirates in 1996, Ke’Bryan established himself as an elite defender by winning three Gold Gloves as the top third baseman in all of the minors.
A first-round pick in 2015 (No. 32 overall), Hayes made it clear that he wanted to be a building block for the team that drafted and developed him as the Pirates focus on their future.
“I was drafted with Pittsburgh,” Hayes told the Tribune-Review in September 2020. “To be able to be here long-term and maybe one day bring a World Series here, that would be awesome for me to do with the same organization I was drafted with.”
Hayes arrived with a splash in September 2020, when he made his major league debut and slashed .376/.442/.682 with seven doubles, two triples, five homers and 11 RBIs in 24 games to earn NL rookie of the month honors. That included a five-hit game, including three doubles, at Cleveland and a string of eight consecutive hits in his final three games.
Last year, Hayes homered against the Chicago Cubs in the season opener, then missed two months with a left hand/wrist injury that lingered all season. He batted .257/.316/.373 with 20 doubles, two triples, six home runs and 38 RBIs in 96 games. He committed only three errors in 249 chances and had 16 defensive runs saved, winning the Fielding Bible award as baseball’s top defensive third baseman.
With six players ranked top-100 prospects by Baseball America in the farm system, the Pirates can use Hayes as the cornerstone for an infield that will eventually feature their No. 1 prospect, shortstop Oneil Cruz, and their past two first-round picks, second baseman Nick Gonzalez and catcher Henry Davis.
“From the get-go, when I got drafted, that was one of my main goals, to debut with the team that drafted me and play my whole career there,” Hayes told AT&T SportsNet. “Fans have always showed me love. The players here, I’ve always had good relationships with. What a place to be able to stay and play out most of my career. I’m very excited for it. I’m thankful and humbled for this opportunity and just ready to get this season going.”