...Details of the agreement between Fielder and the Tigers have begun to emerge.
Fielder, 27, will be paid $23 million in both 2012 and 2013 and then $24 million in each of the final seven years of the contract, according to a breakdown reported today by The Associated Press.
The contract makes Fielder the top-paid athlete in Detroit history.
The next two on the list are his teammates: Miguel Cabrera will be paid $21 million this season as part of an eight-year, $152.3 million deal signed in 2008; and Justin Verlander will get $20 million as part of a five-year, $80 million contract signed in 2010.
The Fielder deal also includes bonuses for being named most valuable player: $500,00 for winning it or $200,000 if he’s the second through fifth MVP runner-up and $100,000 for coming in sixth through 10th, the AP said.
Winning the MVP award more than once gets him $1 million for each time.
Other bonuses reported by the AP include $100,000 if he becomes an All-Star starter and $50,000 if named a reserve. He also would get $100,000 for being named a Baseball America or Sporting News postseason All-Star.Winning any of the Gold Glove, Silver Slugger or Hank Aaron Award honors would bring him $100,000 each.
Being named League Championship Series MVP would bring him $150,000, and he would get $200,000 for being named the World Series MVP.
On road trips, he’ll get a hotel suite, the AP said.
The only active players earning more in average yearly salary now are Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees ($27.5 million), Ryan Howard ($25 million) and Cliff Lee ($24 million) of the Philadelphia Phillies and Albert Pujols of the Los Angeles Angels ($24 million).
Fielder, a lefty, is coming off a one-year, $15.7 million contract with the Milwaukee Brewers, who had an $83.5 million Opening Day payroll in 2011, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts. Before that, he had a two-year, $18 million deal with the Brewers. He had a series of smaller one-year deals with Milwaukee before that contract.
