Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Extending Davis
By Jason A. Churchill
The New York Mets have interest in extending the contract of first baseman Ike Davis, who battled through Valley Fever last spring to smack 32 home runs. He did struggle to hit for average (.227) but the club appears to be looking to avoid going year-to-year with the Super Two player, who has three more years of arbitration remaining.
If talks ensue, Davis is likely to use his 2013 salary of just over $3 million and move up from there, likely in aggressive fashion, assuming he'll continue to hit for power and get back to hitting for more average the way he did in 2010 (.264) and for the six weeks he was healthy in 2011. Such a pact could approach $25 million.
We discussed here at Rumor Central earlier this offseason how the Mets have their financial flexibility back, and that could be a sign that Davis could cash in on some level.
While a three-year deal buys out all of Davis' remaining arbitration years, it might be worth it for both sides to talk about more than that. The price would certainly go up, but considering the club's time table for a return to contention (2014?) it may make more sense to let it ride with Davis at first base for awhile.
