Jose Altuve signed a five-year extension on Tuesday that all but guarantees he will finish his career with the Houston Astros.
The deal is worth $125 million, sources told ESPN, taking him all the way through his age-39 season.
“He’s a franchise-type player; one of the best in Houston history,” owner Jim Crane said. “And we hope someday he’s a Hall of Famer.”
The Astros announced the agreement on social media, calling their diminutive 5-foot-6 superstar as an “Astro For Life.” The 33-year-old Altuve was heading into his final year before free agency. His new deal begins in 2025 and takes him through 2029.
Jose Altuve will be an Astro for life. pic.twitter.com/ndPHz1lP7E
— Houston Astros (@astros) February 6, 2024
He has established himself as a central figure of the most successful era in franchise history, a seven-year stretch that has included two World Series titles, four American League pennants and seven consecutive trips (and counting) to the AL Championship Series.
Signed out of Venezuela in 2007, Altuve defied the odds and turned himself into a superstar despite being one of the most undersized players in baseball history at 5-foot-6.
Through 13 years in the big leagues, Altuve has slashed .307/.364/.471 while accumulating 2,047 hits, 295 stolen bases and 209 home runs. His resume includes eight All-Star invites, six Silver Sluggers, three batting titles, a Gold Glove and an MVP, captured in 2017.
But some of his greatest work has been done in the postseason. Most recently, Altuve hit the dramatic game-winning home run to cap a contentious game against the division-rival Texas Rangers and force Game 7 of the ALCS. He did something similar in the 2019 ALCS, walking off the New York Yankees with a ninth-inning home run off Aroldis Chapman to send the Astros into the World Series.
Altuve and his longtime infield partner, Astros third baseman Alex Bregman, were both heading into their final seasons before free agency in 2024. But the thought all along was that the Astros would at least figure something out with Altuve, who has made a strong case for the Hall of Fame despite the sign-stealing scandal that engulfed his team in recent years.
His new deal will pay him a $15 million signing bonus, then salaries of $30 million in 2025, 2026 and 2027. He’ll make $10 million in both 2029 and 2030.
By the end of it, he’ll become the first second baseman in baseball history to reach $300 million in career earnings.
ESPN’s Jesse Rogers contributed to this report.
