I have been considered by some to be one of the great young stars of the MLB today.
I started playing at a very young age and by the time my 22 year old season was complete I had played more than 200 games.
Some have considered me to be the best at my position batting AND fielding and I have won at least one Gold Glove.
I have appeared in multiple All-Star Games
I have led my team to multiple postseason runs
I have over 30 bWAR and I have played in less than 10 seasons
I banked a HUGE contract worth over $200M in my late 20's
My career wRC+ was 137 when I signed my contract, with a career OPS of 0.874
I had 30+ bWAR and fWAR when I signed my contract
Before proceeding
Do you want to guess who this is?
Does it sound like anyone you know?
I have had back problems
I signed a nine year contract with a mutual option for a tenth year
In 2020-2021 I have a TOTAL of 1.7bWAR and 2.2fWAR
I missed 35 days due to my back issues in 2021
My wRC+ in 2020-2021 was 105 and my OPS has been 0.752 (down 0.122)
My Slugging was 0.492 before my contract and has been 0.392 since
I am no longer the great defensive player I was
My 2022 Steamer projection says I will bounce back to 3.0 fWAR (62% of my pre-contract yearly WAR average)
Some are concerned that now heading into my age 30 season that I will never be the same
My team is still guaranteed to pay me over $180M in salary (2022 to 2029) and deferred cash (2031 to 2042). They will be paying me until I am 50 years old
I am a LF
Who am I?
The answer is Christian Yelich. I think his career arch is a cautionary tale for the Astros Front Office and Jim Crane when considering a Carlos Correa contract.
Yes, this is not the Carlos Correa story. This is the real nightmare that prevents Jim Crane and the Astros from committing to Carlos Correa for more than six years. Learn this story and the ones like it to understand where the Astros are coming from.
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