Freddie Freeman's enormous new Atlanta Braves contract - an eight-year, $US135 million ($A151.93 million) deal that is far and away the largest in the Major League Baseball franchise's history - is the first step in its plan to keep many of the team's top young players for years to come.
"We've looked to solidify our ball club going forward, and literally for the last couple of months we've been putting together a plan that culminated with this signing," said general manager Frank Wren, seated next to Freeman and manager Fredi Gonzalez during a news conference on Wednesday at Turner Field.
"We're looking at how we can keep our team together, especially our young, home-grown players, and we have a lot of collaboration from (Braves chief executive) Terry McGuirk and (team president) John Schuerholz to make sure this franchise stays strong."
Wren said part of that strategy involved higher revenues the Braves expect from a move in 2017 to a planned new ballpark in Cobb County. Their payroll is expected to climb to about $US100 million this season, up from $US90 million.
"I'm just looking forward to the next eight years here," Freeman said. "We've got a lot of guys under (contractual) control for a while. We've got a young, dynamic core and they're going to try to keep us together, so it's definitely nice to see."
Freeman, who finished fifth in the National League MVP balloting in his third season in the majors, got a deal that eclipsed retired star Chipper Jones' six-year, $US90 million extension through 2006 as the largest in team history.
"It's truly an honour. It's very humbling," said the California native, who turned 24 in September and got engaged during the off-season. "This is the team that drafted me in the second round when I was 17 years old and gave me my first opportunity to play professional baseball. It's a team that has great tradition. I put this jersey on with a lot of pride."
