The Astros are reportedly prepared to invest in prospect George Springer, the dynamic outfielder who blasted 37 homers with 45 stolen bases last season, and even offered him a seven-year, $23-million contract last September that the 24-year-old rejected, according to Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal.
Springer, who's vying this spring for a job on the major-league roster, declined the offer because he was unwilling to forfeit three years of earnings through arbitration, as well as his first year of free agency, sources told Rosenthal.
A rival agent estimated that if Springer fulfills his potential, he will earn more than $30 million in his three arbitration years alone.
In that sense, the Astros' offer of an unprecedented long-term deal was shrewd; they were gambling that Springer would sacrifice future earning power for an immediate life-changing guarantee.