Most stunning free agent deals in MLB history

2013-14: Robinson Canó signs with Mariners

Canó had been a Yankee for all nine seasons of his career when he signed a 10-year, $240 million contract with the Mariners in December 2013. Not only was it a blockbuster move because of the sheer amount and length of the deal, but because Canó left the big stage of New York to join a Seattle franchise that hadn’t been to the postseason since 2001. But Seattle’s offer reportedly far exceeded New York’s in both monetary value and length, prompting the second baseman to head to the opposite coast.

2011-12: Albert Pujols signs with Angels

A Cardinal for his entire 11-year Major League career to that point, Pujols inked a 10-year, $254 million contract with the Angels in December 2011, a move that stunned the baseball world after it appeared the Cardinals, among a handful of other teams, were favorites to sign the future Hall-of-Fame slugger. The deal was the second-largest in baseball history in terms of average annual value behind Alex Rodriguez’s 10-year, $275 million deal with the Yankees in 2007.