Rockies sign Ryan McMahon to six-year, $70 million extension, per report

The Rockies are in agreement on a six-year, $70 million extension with infielder Ryan McMahon, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. This move continues an interesting offseason spending spree for Colorado, which has also extended right-hander Antonio Senzatela and first baseman C.J. Cron, signed shortstop José Iglesias and reliever Alex Colomé to one-year deals, and inked former MVP Kris Bryant to a seven-year, $182 million deal, despite their historic reluctance to spend and the fact that they’re not expected to finish any better than fourth in the NL West this year.

With two 20-plus homer seasons in five years, including a 23-homer campaign in 2021, the 27-year-old McMahon has shown that he’s capable of being an impactful power hitter at the major league level, though with a .323 career on-base percentage, he has yet to prove that he’ll be consistent enough to be an above-average big-league hitter.

McMahon’s greatest skill, however, is his defense, and that was likely the greatest motivation in the Rockies giving him a long-term deal. He collected 13 defensive runs saved in 113 games at third base and nine in 52 games at second, which was crucial in the career-high 4.0 bWAR he posted in 2021. With Bryant, a player who traditionally has shifted between third base and the corner outfield spots as needs dictate, the Rockies can feel comfortable playing McMahon at the hot corner on most days, but he’s also very good at second if they choose to play Bryant at third.