KANSAS CITY, Missouri (MLB.com) - Royals general manager Dayton Moore, as is his policy, is not confirming a report that the Royals have opened renegotiation talks with the representatives for catcher Salvador Perez.
MLB Network's Jon Heyman tweeted on Monday that the Royals were trying to rework/extend Perez's present contract, which originally was a five-year deal signed in 2012 with club options from 2017-19.
"As I've said before," Moore said by phone, "it doesn't do our organization any good to discuss any negotiation publicly."
While the contract -- which has a maximum value of $26.5 million -- has been criticized lately as overly club-friendly, it was actually a risky venture for the Royals when Perez signed it. He had played in just 39 games before signing it and then scared club officials when he tore a ligament in his knee two weeks later, missing months of playing time -- a reminder of how potentially risky the long-term deal was.
Perez, the World Series Most Valuable Player, is set to earn at least $2 million in 2016. Through performance escalators, the 25-year-old's salary under the current deal would increase to $3.825 million in '17, $5.15 million in '18 and $6.3 million in '19.
Perez, who has averaged 143 games over the past three seasons, is expected to appear at the Royals' FanFest this weekend.
