Jose Altuve of the Houston Astros agrees to a five-year, $125 million contract extension with the team, February 6, 2024. /AP
The Houston Astros have reached a five-year, $125 million contract extension with their star second baseman Jose Altuve, ESPN reported on Tuesday.
Considering that Altuve will turn 34 in early May, he is likely to finish his career with the Astros, where he began his Major League Baseball career in 2011.
"He's a franchise-type player; one of the best in Houston history," Jim Crane, owner of the team, said of Altuve. "And we hope someday he's a Hall of Famer."
Crane was absolutely right about one thing: that Altuve will be enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in the future as an eight-time All-Star, two-time World Series champion, six-time Silver Slugger Award winner and three-time American League (AL) batting champion who was named the AL Most Valuable Player in 2017 and won many other honors.
Jose Altuve (#27) of the Houston Astros hits a three-run homer during the ninth inning in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, October 20, 2023. /AP
Altuve batted .307 of at bats, .364 of on-base percentage and .471 of slugging percentage per game, with 2,047 hits, 295 stolen bases and 209 home runs in his career. His stats grew even more glorious in the playoffs as he slashed 27 homers and had 89 runs scored, both the second-most of all time. He also tied for the third-most hits in the post season at 117 and became one of the only four players in major league history to post more than 100 hits and 50 runs batted in.
The Astros have never been absent from the AL Championship Series (ALCS) since 2017. Though they lost to the Texas Rangers 4-3 in the ALCS last season, it wouldn't have reached Game 7 if Altuve hadn't blown the dramatic winning home run in Game 5.
The Astros wrote that Altuve will be "an Astro for life" on X on Tuesday.