By KEVIN ACEE The San Diego Union-Tribune
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SAN DIEGO — The Padres have locked up another young player they believe will be a cornerstone of a championship club for years to come.

And they have done it at a wholly reasonable price.

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Jackson Merrill, their 21-year-old center fielder who just began his second big league season, has agreed to a nine-year contract extension that begins in 2026 and guarantees him $135 million.

The contract has no opt-outs and includes a club option for 2035 that starts at $21 million. The club option switches to a player option if Merrill finishes in the top five in MVP voting in any year of the contract.

Additionally, the annual salaries beginning in 2030 increase by $1 million for every year Merrill gets 500 plate appearances, which means the deal could rightly be considered a nine-year, $165 million deal if Merrill stays healthy.

His 2035 option year also increases $1 million for every year he finishes in the top 10 in MVP voting. The maximum value of the contract is $204 million over 10 years.

The Merrill deal is the second large contract given out since John Seidler took over as team chairman, along with the four-year, $55 million contract starting pitcher Nick Pivetta signed in February.

Locking up Merrill essentially gives the Padres three layers of star players.

Manny Machado and Xander Bogaerts are 32 years old and have deals that run through 2033. Fernando Tatis Jr. is 26 and is signed through ‘34. Merrill turns 22 on April 19.

The pact is reminiscent of the one Tatis signed in 2021, though at a price tag far less than the $340 million the Padres awarded Tatis over a 14-year span.

The team-friendly nature of Merrill’s contract is not all that surprising when considering Merrill, the son of two elementary school teachers, has said he felt like whatever he signed for would be more than he could ever spend. He has repeatedly expressed his love for the Padres.

As talks were conducted over the final couple weeks of spring training and into the season’s first week, Merrill expressed to the Padres that he just needed enough to be treated fairly.

Everything about him has essentially screamed he is the kind of player who would be amenable to this type of deal in order to concentrate on playing the game he loves in the place he loves playing it.

“I’m just here to play baseball,” Merrill said in an on-field interview on the Padres’ postgame show after he went 1 for 3 with a walk and a home run that got the Padres’ scoring started in a 7-0 victory over the Guardians on Tuesday. “I’m here to win games every day. I’m here to win for the city. That’s all I’m here to do.”

A shortstop in the minor leagues, Merrill became the fourth-youngest player in the Divisional Era (since 1969) to start in center field on opening day when he was there for the Padres in their 2024 opener. He ended up batting .292 with an .826 OPS last season, being selected to the National League All-Star team and finishing second to Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes in NL Rookie of the Year voting.

Merrill was just the sixth rookie 21 years old or younger in MLB history to hit at least 24 home runs, six triples and 31 doubles. Also on that list are Hall of Famers Joe DiMaggio, Frank Robinson and Ted Williams.

Merrill’s 5.3 WAR was the eighth highest by a rookie since 2000 and it ranked seventh among all National League position players.