Yadier Molina, Cardinals Reportedly Discussing Contract Extension

Yadier Molina has been a St. Louis Cardinal since the organization drafted him in the fourth round of the 2000 MLB draft, and the 37-year-old's allegiances don't appear to be changing anytime soon.

"The Cardinals are in the midst of trying to work out a contract extension with Molina that will keep the Hall of Fame-bound catcher playing at least through the end of the 2021 season and probably through 2022," The Athletic's Mark Saxon wrote on Wednesday.

The 2020 season will be the last on Molina's three-year, $60 million contract, per Spotrac. The nine-time Gold Glove winner is owed $20 million in base salary.

Molina has been a Cardinals cornerstone since making his major league debut on June 3, 2004, helping the club win the World Series in 2006 and 2011. The Puerto Rican has been impeccably durable. He has started at least 100 regular-season games at catcher every year except for his rookie campaign. 

Molina proved he can still produce in 2019. He posted a .270/.312/.399 slash line with 10 home runs and 57 RBI across 452 plate appearances in 113 games while starting 108 games behind the plate. Overall, he spent 939.1 innings at catcher with a 99.9 putout percentage. His 27 percent caught stealing percentage was in line with the league average (26 percent).

The four-time Platinum Glove winner made it clear in January that it's Cards or bust for him moving forward. 

"I also said that if the Cardinals want me, that's the only team I want to play for," Molina told Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "So, it's still like that too. If they want me. If they want to move apart, that's it for me."

"It's likely they'll explore the look of an extension that reaches through 2021 and then gives the team and Molina an option for 2022, the season when Molina will turn 40," Goold added.

That appears to be exactly what is happening.