Victor Martinez's Big Money Re-Up a Necessary Evil for Contending Tigers

The Detroit Tigers had to go this way. They had almost no other option.

Allowing Victor Martinez to walk through the free-agent market and into another team's clubhouse would have officially put them a rung or two below the Kansas City Royals and weakened their hold on the American League Central to a couple of fingers.

The Tigers knew it was going to cost them more money and more years than seemed ideal for a player of Martinez's health, age and on-field deficiencies. Still, striking fast on a four-year, $68 million contract with Martinez was necessary because of the rest of the team's uncertainty.

Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal first reported the pending deal Wednesday, and CBS Sports' Jon Heyman was first to report the financials:

"

V-Mart deal is $17M per year, so $68M for the 4.

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) November 12, 2014"

The Tigers might have won the AL Central for a fourth consecutive year in 2014, but the Baltimore Orioles swept them out of the playoffs, and the Tigers watched the Royals march to the World Series and come within a game of winning the ring.

Making Detroit's situation worse after the World Series was the fact that Martinez (its second-best hitter), Max Scherzer (its ace) and Torii Hunter (the "heart of the clubhouse," according to MLB.com's Jason Beck) were free agents, and Miguel Cabrera's ankle/foot situation could keep him out through the start of next season.

There are also these headaches: Justin Verlander is clearly on the decline but signed for the long term, starters David Price and Rick Porcello are no sure bets to stay with the team beyond next season, the bullpen is still a mess and the farm system is lacking immediate major league impact, adding to the cloudy future of the franchise.

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All of that made retaining Martinez a top priority, as general manager Dave Dombrowski told The Associated Press (h/t Detroit Free Press).

"We like Victor. We hope he remains with us," Dombrowski said at the GM meetings Tuesday. "We'll see what happens."

The Tigers get to keep their cleanup hitter after a season in which he put up a .335/.409/.565 line with a .974 OPS and 168 OPS-plus with 32 home runs and 103 RBI.

Losing that kind of production, along with possibly Hunter and Cabrera's health a major question, could have made the Royals the favorite in the AL Central. Keeping Martinez alleviates some of the team's pressure to stay at the top.

Martinez will be 36 years old on Dec. 23, which means the Tigers will be paying him an average of $17 million through his age-39 season. That is the highest annual average value ever for a DH, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post, bettering David Ortiz's $16 million for next season:

"

At $17M per yr, VMart becomes highest avg ever for DH. Ortiz got $16M on 1-yr deal in ’15. Hafner $14.25M on multi-yr #tigers

— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) November 12, 2014"

Martinez's deal also gives the Tigers an expensive and aging core between him, Cabrera and Verlander. By the time the Martinez contract hits its final year, the Tigers will owe all three of them a combined $75 million.

They will still have Verlander and Cabrera to pay for at least one more season beyond that, and Cabrera for at least five. Per NBC Sports' Aaron Gleeman:

"

Tigers will owe 35-year-old Miguel Cabrera, 35-year-old Justin Verlander, and 39-year-old Victor Martinez a total of $75 million in 2018.

— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) November 12, 2014"

For the sake of comparison—and humor—it could be worse. Per Minnesota Twins writer Brandon Warne: 

"

When Victor Martinez's new deal ends, the Angels will still owe Albert Pujols $87 million

— Brandon Warne (@Brandon_Warne) November 12, 2014"

While Martinez being back in the mix answers a big question for the Tigers, the contract has the potential to get ugly. Thirty-six is approaching ancient for an athlete, but bringing him back was a necessary evil for the Tigers because of where they stand now.

The Tigers are in a win-now mode, maybe more than any other team in the majors. Detroit knows it is getting old and that its stars will likely all start declining, maybe as quickly as next season.

On top of that, it looks like Scherzer won't be back, and if Price and Porcello bolt next winter, this incarnation of the Tigers might be their last realistic chance to contend for a World Series for the foreseeable future.

Allowing Martinez and Scherzer to both leave this offseason would not have been smart. Yes, they may be handcuffed by the Martinez decision in a couple of years, but punting him away now would have severely crippled their chances for next season.

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His contract is a mortgage of sorts for the chance to keep winning for at least one more year. Their future of aging, expensive stars is already destined with Verlander and Cabrera, so Martinez's new contract only adds to an impending problem that was already well in progress.

Understanding that means you understand that Martinez was a must-have for Detroit. The team knows it has limited years to win with Cabrera at an elite level and something of a productive Verlander.

Adding that to Martinez, Price and Porcello means the Tigers can still appease an anxious fanbase—one that hasn't celebrated a World Series title since 1984—for at least one more year.

How it all plays out four years from now is not an immediate concern.

Anthony Witrado covers Major League Baseball for Bleacher Report. He spent the previous three seasons as the national baseball columnist at Sporting News, and four years before that as the Brewers beat writer for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Follow Anthony on Twitter @awitrado and talk baseball here.