With the baseball winter meetings starting next week in Nashville, the baseball off-season is starting to heat up.
Free-agent outfielder B.J. Upton has agreed to a five-year deal with the Atlanta Braves worth over $75 million, according to sources at ESPN and USA Today.
Upton confirmed the news himself on Twitter by changing the picture on his avatar to the Atlanta Braves logo and also thanking former MLBPA leader Marvin Miller, who passed away on Tuesday and helped make free agency possible.
"I want to take a minute to remember Marvin Miller and thank him for all he has done for us players past present and future. #thankyoumarvin"
The 28-year-old outfielder has played his entire career for the Tampa Bay Rays after being taken No. 2-overall in the 2002 MLB Draft. Last season he hit .246 with 78 RBIs, 141 hits, 29 doubles, 28 home runs and 31 stolen bases, along with a .298 on-base percentage.
According to ESPN.com, "He's averaged .255, 20 homers, 75 RBIs and 39 steals per season."
Upton played much better this past season after the All-Star break. Prior to the break he hit only .248, but improved in nearly every statistical category after the break, including in on-base percentage (.819), home runs (21), doubles (17) and RBIs (49).
Tampa Bay wasn't willing to give as much money or as many years as other teams to Upton, although the Rays shelled out a six-year, $100 million extension to Evan Longoria last week.
Earlier in November, Upton turned down a chance to stay in Tampa Bay by turning down a one-year, $13.3 million offer.
According to ESPN.com, "Upton will become just the third outfielder 28 or younger (as of Opening Day) to receive a contract of at least $75 million, according to ESPN Stats & Information. The others were Manny Ramirez in 2000 from the Boston Red Sox (eight years, $160 million) and Carlos Beltran in 2004 from the New York Mets (seven years, $119 million)."
Upton has a career .255 batting average, with 118 home runs, 910 hits, 202 doubles, 447 RBIs and a .336 on-base percentage.
According to Ken Rosenthal on Twitter, the signing of Upton is likely the end of outfielder Michael Bourn in Atlanta after he became a free agent after the 2012 season.
Over the years Upton has earned criticism from the media and others in baseball for not always hustling in the field, including in 2008 when he was benched for not running out a ground ball the previous night and also for an incident after not running out a double-play ball.
In 2008 when the Rays made it to the World Series, Upton hit .288 with seven home runs, 16 RBIs, six stolen bases and 19 hits in 16 games. Upton strikes out at a high-rate, but makes up for it with power. He has struck out 160 times in three-straight seasons, including 169 last season.
According to ESPN.com, "He leaves town ranked among the top five in home runs (118), runs batted in (447), extra-base hits (340), and stolen bases (232). He also struck out a franchise-high 1,020 times as a member of the Rays."
Upton had a career-high 28 home runs in 2012, but his best overall season came in 2007 when he hit .300 with 24 home runs and 82 RBIs. He also stole 22 bases and had 145 hits.
