The Oakland Athletics have agreed to a seven-year, $86 million contract extension with breakout left fielder Tyler Soderstrom, first reported by ESPN's Jeff Passan on Christmas Day 2025. The deal, the largest guaranteed in franchise history, includes an eighth-year club option and escalators potentially worth $131 million overall.
Soderstrom, 24, earned the extension after a transformative 2025 season, slashing .276/.346/.474 with 25 home runs, 93 RBIs, a 126 OPS+, and 3.4 fWAR (4.3 per Baseball Reference) over 158 games. Drafted 26th overall in 2020 as a catcher, he debuted in 2023 and struggled initially (.204 average, .636 OPS in 106 games). This year, he solidified his role as a cornerstone, shifting from first base to left field in late April after prospect Nick Kurtz arrived. With no prior outfield experience, Soderstrom started 100 games in LF, notched 11 outfield assists, earned Gold Glove finalist honors, and posted +5 Outs Above Average (up from -5 at 1B). Statcast ranked him in the 86th percentile for hard-hit rate (49.8%) and 70th for barrel rate (11.4%).
The extension, pending official club confirmation, secures Soderstrom through at least 2032, buying out three free-agent seasons and surpassing Luis Severino's prior franchise-record three-year, $67 million deal. It marks the third long-term commitment to the young core in the past year, following Brent Rooker and Lawrence Butler.
General manager David Forst emphasized building for the future: “I’ve had a lot of conversations with ownership about wanting to continue that model and locking guys up into our time in Las Vegas.” The A's, temporarily in Sacramento ahead of their 2028 Las Vegas move, recently acquired two-time All-Star Jeff McNeil from the Mets to bolster the lineup with Soderstrom (24), shortstop Jacob Wilson (23), and Kurtz (22).
