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Sources: Juan Lagares agrees to 4-year, $23 million extension with Mets

Mets center fielder Juan Lagares is best known for his defense. (AP)
Mets center fielder Juan Lagares is best known for his defense. (AP)

Outfielder Juan Lagares agreed to a four-year, $23 million extension with the New York Mets that includes a club option to buy out one season of free agency, major league sources told Yahoo Sports.

The 26-year-old Lagares is best known for his brilliant defense in center field, and the Mets are hopeful his bat catches up. In his two major league seasons, Lagares has hit .262/.302/.368.

The contract, which will be official after a Thursday physical, starts in 2016, at which point Lagares likely would have been eligible for arbitration as a Super 2. The first year calls for a $2.5 million salary, followed by years at $4.5 million, $6.5 million and $9 million, sources said, and the option is for $9.5 million, with a $500,000 buyout.

Because arbitration tends to reward players on offensive value over defensive brilliance, Lagares fetching $20 million-plus guaranteed is a win. And the Mets, betting his value will be even greater as baseball’s Statcast player-tracking system is launched in all 30 stadiums this season and better quantifies his glovework, gained cost certainty.

The Mets, hamstrung by financial problems over the course of the decade, now have their outfield of Lagares, Michael Cuddyer and Curtis Granderson locked up through 2016. Sources said they’ve continued to negotiate with first baseman Lucas Duda on a potential contract extension.

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