The Tigers have signed centerfielder Curtis Granderson to a five-year, $30.25 million deal with an option for 2013. Like most of these pre-free-agency contracts, this one's great for both sides: Granderson's set for life now, and the Tigers now control what would have been his first two free agency years, for what is presumably a relatively low price. As with all these deals, there's some risk here, but this contract only guarantees the Tigers will have to pay through Granderson's age-31 season. For an athletic player with a well-rounded skill set, Granderson seems like a very good bet to be productive until the contract expires.

This year has really been the year of these sorts of contracts, these three- to six-year deals, often with a club option, for players who aren't yet eligible for free agency - there's been Granderson, James Shields, Jake Peavy, Troy Tulowitzki, Dontrelle Willis, Carlos Pena, Justin Morneau, Mike Cuddyer, Nate Robertson, Aaron Cook...