Inside Colt Keith's decision to sign contract with Detroit Tigers: 'This is his dream'

To learn about someone, talk to their parents.

Colt Keith, a 22-year-old without a taste of the big leagues, made one of the biggest decisions in his life when he became the seventh player to sign a long-term contract extension before his first MLB game.

He signed for $500,000 after the Detroit Tigers drafted him out of high school in 2020. He made less than $50,000 between Double-A Erie and Triple-A Toledo in 2023. Beginning in 2024, he is guaranteed to make $28,642,500 — that's $28.6 million — over the next six years of his career after signing a long-term extension with the Tigers. His new contract could be worth $82 million over nine seasons, an average annual value of $9.1 million, but only if all three club options are escalated and exercised.

"Having this contract means he doesn't have to worry about whether his bills are getting paid next month," Keith's mother, Mary Keith, said Tuesday in the Tiger Club at Comerica Park. "He can just go play baseball. We told him last night, 'If you ever have to worry about money, you've got the problem.'"

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It's a low-risk, high-upside contract for the Tigers, considering that Keith's blend of contact, power, and swing decisions make him the Opening Day second baseman and one of the top candidates to win American League Rookie of the Year in 2024. He will wear the No. 33 jersey with the Tigers.

Keith hit .306 with 27 home runs across 126 games last season in the minor leagues.

But Keith could be leaving tens of millions of dollars — possibly hundreds of millions of dollars — on the table by waiting until age 31 to become a free agent, rather than getting there at age 28, but don't let that distract from what really happened when the former fifth-round draft pick put pen to paper: He and his family became financially secure for the rest of their lives.

"He doesn't waste money," Mary said. "The biggest expense for him is food."

Eat, sleep, play baseball.

That's pretty much all Keith has to worry about for the next six years — possibly the next nine years — of his life. He also needs to make good choices, but let's keep in mind, this guy shotgunned a root beer to celebrate when Double-A Erie clinched its postseason berth because he doesn't drink alcohol. Nobody doubts his strength of character, just like nobody doubts his ability to hit.

"There are positives and negatives and risks on both sides," Keith said Tuesday in the Tiger Club, sitting at a table with president of baseball operations Scott Harris and general manager Jeff Greenberg. "Worst-case for both of us, the organization and myself, is I don't pan out and I end up with security, financially, for me and my family for the rest of our lives. Best case for both of us is all of the option years are exercised, we win a couple of World Series, I make myself a boatload of money, and I'm still a free agent at 31."

Trusting his advisers

It was December 2023.

Keith, who is getting married within the calendar year, first heard about the chance of signing a contract extension during the holidays while visiting family members in Ohio. He was hanging out with one of his friends who happened to be building a cabin.

"Overwhelming joy," Keith said. "I was glad that we were even having these talks."

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There were no details yet, just that the Tigers were interested in pursuing a long-term extension. He called his parents, Mary and Troy, to break the news.

"Oh my gosh, it's happening," Keith told his parents.

His parents knew what he meant.

"Seeing it happen to other people, we've discussed it," Mary said. "Like, 'If this would ever happen, what would you do?' It's the hypothetical that you ask every once in a while."

Six other players have signed long-term contract extensions without any major-league service time: Jackson Chourio (Milwaukee Brewers), Luis Robert Jr. (Chicago White Sox), Evan White (Seattle Mariners), Eloy Jiménez (White Sox), Scott Kingery (Philadelphia Phillies) and Jon Singleton (Houston Astros).

Back in December, 19-year-old Chourio signed an eight-year, $82 million contract, which maxes out at $142.5 million over 10 years, with the Brewers. Two months later, Keith signed his six-year extension with the Tigers through 2029 with club options for 2030, 2031 and 2032.

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Keith's agent, Matt Paul, negotiated the contract. He described the contract extension as "fair and equitable for both sides" during Tuesday's news conference.

Keith and Paul live five minutes away from each other in Biloxi, Mississippi, and train together during the offseason. They've been together for the past seven years, long before the 2020 draft.

"Matt Paul is the only agent that hits with you every single day," Keith said. "We're out there all the time. He can speak on my swing. We've been working on keeping it short, compact, keeping my head still."

They're like family.

"He trusts me, and I trust him," said Paul, who helped Keith weigh the pros and cons of a long-term extension. "I know good how he can be, and I have a pretty good idea of how good he's going to be. Our relationship played a really big role. It's not like we talk once a week over the phone. We're together all the time in person, so we can have real-time conversations."

His parents advised their son on the extension, as well.

"Get enough that you don't have to worry about paying for stuff," Mary said. "Get enough to eat, you know? If that's all you get, then you're good, and if you get more, even better."

Opportunity to win

Ultimately, Keith wants to win with the Tigers.

Keith, a left-handed hitter, plans to bring a World Series championship to Detroit for the first time since 1984, whether he's making $2.5 million, $5 million or $15 million in any given season. The Tigers haven't reached the postseason since 2014, tied for MLB's longest playoff drought.

"There's also negatives to it," Keith said. "Potentially I outplay the contract, and in my eyes, I see that as a positive because the Tigers are going to be winning more games. At the end of the day, I got my financial security with the ability to sign another contract down the road, and the Tigers will still have money to sign other players."

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Harris chimed in.

"I just want to interject one thing, which is a less obvious but important part of this deal," Harris said. "For some players, sometimes, limiting distractions can help you become a better player. I've seen it before in my career."

Signing the multi-million dollar contract extension compares to another decision Keith made: Signing with the Tigers out of high school for $500,000 — roughly $300,000 after taxes — because the opportunity to play professional baseball was of the utmost importance, more so than trying to become a first-round pick by improving his stock in college.

"We encouraged that," his mother, Mary, said. "If you get to do your dream job, what more could you ask for?"

In the same way, Keith wanted an extended opportunity to play for the Tigers in the big leagues.

If he struggles and needs a Triple-A Toledo reset, which seems unlikely based on the way he has already performed for the Mud Hens, the Tigers won't forget about him. Health is another factor because Keith injured his throwing shoulder less than two years ago but didn't undergo surgery. If he injures his shoulder again, or any other body part, he won't need to worry about getting passed up while stuck on the injured list. First-round picks typically get longer leashes than fifth-round picks, but in this case, the Tigers have millions of reasons to keep Keith in the mix for playing time no matter what happens.

Paul echoed his client's team-first attitude.

"I think this alights with the type of person that he is," Paul said, "putting himself in a position to put the team first and then focus on being the best leader he can be. That was our focus."

It will take six years to figure out if Keith made the right choice, but when the Tigers put the financial opportunity of a lifetime on the table, Keith wasn't going to risk missing out.

That's why Keith took the deal.

"This is his dream," Mary said.

Now, Keith's focus shifts to Opening Day.

"I look forward to helping the Tigers win for years to come," he said.

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Inside Colt Keith's decision to sign contract with Detroit Tigers