Giants Sign SS Brandon Crawford to Two-Year Extension

Crawford, a three-time All-Star, has spent his entire career with San Francisco and was set to be a free agent this offseason.

Months ahead of perhaps the greatest shortstop free agency class of all time, one headline player is already off the market.

The Giants have agreed to a two-year contract extension with All-Star Brandon Crawford, the team announced Friday. The deal is worth $32 million.

Brandon Crawford will stay in the Bay pic.twitter.com/9u0oYC1EOC

— SFGiants (@SFGiants) August 13, 2021

Crawford, 34, is in the midst of perhaps the best season of his career. Entering Friday, the three-time All-Star was hitting .296/.364/.540 with 19 home runs and 69 RBIs on the season in 95 games for the first-place Giants. He's two home runs shy of his career high and has a career-best nine stolen bases in nine attempts, while his .904 OPS is nearly 200 points higher than his career mark coming into 2021.

Crawford was set to be one of several high-end shortstops to hit the free agent market this offseason. Among that group is Corey Seager, Carlos Correa, Javier Báez, Trevor Story and Marcus Semien. Crawford's return secures at least one piece of San Francisco's World Series core from the last decade, while catcher Buster Posey and first baseman Brandon Belt could also become free agents at the end of the season.

The Giants entered Friday with the best record in the league, holding a five-game lead over the Dodgers in the National League West.