Oakland Athletics give $60M extension to designated hitter-outfielder Brent Rooker

Jan. 7 (UPI) -- All-Star slugger Brent Rooker agreed to a five-year, $60 million contract extension with the Oakland Athletics.

Sources told ESPN, MLB.com and The Athletic about the pact on Tuesday. Rooker's deal includes a sixth-year vesting option worth $22 million. The designated hitter-outfielder was eligible to hit arbitration this offseason and could have became a free agent in 2028.

Rooker, 30, hit .293 with a career-high 39 home runs and 112 RBIs over 145 appearances last season. He hit .246 with 30 home runs and 69 RBIs over 137 games in 2023, en route to his first All-Star selection.

Rooker joined the Athletics off waivers from the Kansas City Royals in 2022. He joined the Royals earlier that year in a trade from the San Diego Padres. Rooker initially entered the league as the No. 35 overall pick by the Minnesota Twins in the 2017 MLB Draft.

The Twins traded Rooker to the Padres during the 2022 offseason.

The former Mississippi State star hit .258 with 79 home runs through the first five years of his MLB career.