Cleveland Indians reportedly sign Jose Ramirez to contract extension

The Cleveland Indians want to keep homegrown talent in Cleveland, and continued that process by signing Jose Ramirez to a contract extension.

Cleveland Indians fans received some exciting news to begin Friday night when Jeff Passan dropped some information regarding Jose Ramirez and a contract extension.

As Passan explains, it is a four-year extension that begins in 2018, and includes team options in both 2022 and 2023.

This is a great affordable deal for the Indians, who keep a core member of the team in Cleveland until at least 2021, although it is hard to imagine the club not picking up at least one of his options.

Ramirez now sits as the favorite to be the starting third baseman for the foreseeable future, joining Francisco Lindor and Jason Kipnis as mainstays in the infield.

There may be some fans who think Ramirez was overpaid, but this is not the case. If he continues his 2016 pace, it is a bargain. If he regresses at all, it is still not that much of a bad buy.

Ramirez’s ceiling, in the words of the great Michael Jordan, is the roof. He has the potential to be a perennial All-Star for a contending team, and a permanent fixture at third base for a team that has shuffled several players through the position throughout the recent past.

Next: Previewing MLB award winners on the 2017 roster

Fans will now get to see Ramirez’s helmet fly off until at least 2021. That leaves extending Francisco Lindor as the team’s next big move, but let’s take one at a time.