Jose Martinez’s teammates with the St. Louis Cardinals applauded his new contract

JUPITER http://www.raysfanproshop.com/authentic-evan-longoria-jersey , Fla. (AP) — Saturday, and the deal gave his family reason to cheer, too.The outfielder/first baseman signed a $3.25 million, two-year contract to remain with the Cardinals, who essentially bought out his first year of arbitration after this season.Martinez said he would send some of the money to relatives in his native Venezuela, which has been plagued by food and medical shortages and a political crisis.“It’s not even for me, just for my family,” Martinez said. “It’s a tough situation there. You have a little incentive for sure.”The deal was announced before the Cardinals’ spring training opener against the Miami Marlins. Manager Mike Shildt said the popular Martinez received “two hearty rounds of applause” from teammates when they were told the news.“It was really an honor to be able to say that in the clubhouse,” Shildt said. “He’s an important part of what we’re doing.”The Cardinals also announced that right-hander Miles Mikolas will start opening day at Milwaukee on March 28. Mikolas returned to the major leagues last year after three seasons in Japan, became a first-time All-Star and went 18-4.“A year ago, saying Miles would be our opening day starter this year would have been a shock to everyone,” general manager Mike Girsch said. “He pitched amazing last year.”Mikolas will join a list of Cardinals opening day starters that includes Hall of Famers Bob Gibson Matt Andriese Jersey , Dizzy Dean, Jesse Haines and Grover Cleveland Alexander.“It’s a huge, huge honor,” Mikolas said. “I’m very humbled by that.”Following the announcement, Mikolas pitched two perfect innings against Miami.“I might have missed a little bit in and out, but the ball was down, which was good,” he said. “As long as the fastball is down, good things are going to happen.”Martinez, 30, led the Cardinals with a .305 average last year and had 17 homers and 83 RBIs. He played 887 games in the minors before reaching the big leagues, and has since hit .309 over parts of three seasons.“He has had a unique career path and has been a huge part of our team the last couple of years C. J. Cron Jersey ,” Girsch said. “We felt the right thing to do was to give him some certainty.”Martinez said he was surprised by the contract offer, which included incentives.“If you are a good teammate, good things will happen to you,” Martinez said. “I’m just trying to get to that promised land — trying to win the World Series.”He’ll compete with Dexter Fowler and Tyler O’Neill this spring for the right field job. He could also back up Marcell Ozuna in left.“Jose is going to get at-bats somewhere,” Girsch said. “We just don’t know how it’s going to work out. And I’m sure he’ll continue to hit.” The St. Louis Cardinals knew that Paul Goldschmidt had one year left on his contract when they acquired the slugging first baseman in an offseason trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks.They also made no secret of their desire to sign him to a long-term deal.Now, the Cardinals and the 31-year-old Goldschmidt are nearing completion of a $130 million, five-year agreement through the 2024 season that would make him the highest paid player in club history, a person familiar with the terms told The Associated Press on Friday.The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because Goldschmidt still must pass a physical, which is mostly a formality. It is expected to take place later Friday, with an announcement likely Saturday.The Athletic was first to report that a deal was imminent.“Goldschmidt has that residual value that is measurable and maybe not measurable,” Cardinals manager Mike Shildt said. “His impact on other guys in the clubhouse. Obviously, he’s a good player on the field. He’s an established guy in the league. We know what we can count on with him.“The offense will be there. He lengthens our lineup http://www.raysfanproshop.com/authentic-evan-longoria-jersey ,” Shildt added, “but what I appreciate about the (trade for him) is the defense that we can expect to get from Paul as well. He’s also got a passion for base running, which is fantastic. He appreciates the nuances of the game. His impact will be real in what we can expect. He’s just a standup guy.”Goldschmidt is due $14.5 million this season, while his new agreement trumps a $120 million, seven-year deal that the Cardinals gave outfielder Matt Holliday in 2010. It also follows huge free-agent deals given to Bryce Harper by the Phillies and Manny Machado by the Padres, and the 12-year, $426.5 million contract that the Angels gave to Mike Trout on Wednesday.Cardinals president John Mozeliak acknowledged to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that “we are working toward something,” but officials otherwise declined to comment on Goldschmidt’s contract.Goldschmidt has been an All-Star each of the past six seasons, and he rebounded from a slow start with the Diamondbacks last year to hit .290 with 33 homers and 83 RBIs. It was his fourth year with at least 33 homers, and he has a career .297 batting average and four Silver Slugger awards.He also plays so solidly at first base, winning three Gold Gloves, that three-time All-Star Matt Carpenter agreed to move to third base full-time to clear the way for him.Goldschmidt also has been remarkably durable Jonny Venters Jersey , appearing in at least 155 games five of the past six seasons. He led the league with 705 plate appearances in 158 games in 2016.The Cardinals have been seeking an offensive-minded star ever since Albert Pujols left for the Angels as a free agent. They worked hard to acquire Jason Heyward and Giancarlo Stanton before those opportunities fell through, then zeroed in on Goldschmidt late last year.They wound up sending right-hander Luke Weaver, catcher Carson Kelly and infielder Andy Young to Arizona in December, and finally landed the big bat they wanted in their lineup.“When we met in October,” Mozeliak said, “we talked about the importance of winning now. We do have a very good baseball team and we just decided to make it better. By doing so, we added Paul, and Paul Goldschmidt has plenty of baseball ahead of him in his career.”