SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Matt Chapman's bet on himself paid off.
After agreeing to a deal with San Francisco during spring training that allowed him to opt out after one season, the Giants third baseman agreed Wednesday to a $151 million, six-year contract for 2025-30.
“This offseason was a little strange with the free-agent market, but I was willing to bet on myself,” Chapman said during a news conference Thursday. “I believed in myself. I believed that the Giants would see my value as the season went on and what I bring every single day.”
Chapman joined the Giants with a contract guaranteeing $54 million over three seasons. That deal gave him the right to opt out after 2024 and 2025. It included a $2 million signing bonus and a $16 million salary for 2024.
He was along several Boras clients who signed after the start of spring training, a group that included Giants teammate Blake Snell along with Jordan Montgomery and J.D. Martinez.
“The game rewards players like this,” said Scott Boras, Chapman’s agent.
Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said conversations began two-to-three weeks ago. Chapman gets a $1 million signing bonus payable Jan. 15 and salaries of $25 million annually. The deal includes a full no-trade provision.
“We’re a team that’s trying to compete every year,” Zaidi said. “When we have an opportunity to get a great player who’s willing to bet on himself, that’s always an attractive proposition to us. And that’s what Matt did. He bet on himself and he got a very deserving reward today.”
Chapman was scratched from the starting lineup Wednesday, missing just his fourth game this season to work on finalizing the contract.
“Obviously, it was pretty important to get this thing done,” Chapman said. “We got it done, and now chances are I’m not going to be watching very much.”
Chapman was back in the lineup on Thursday, batting cleanup in a 3-2 win over Arizona. Giants manager Bob Melvin, who also managed Chapman in Oakland, said that the 31-year-old has become a clubhouse leader.
“We have some younger guys here that are learning their way and developing right now, and they watch the way he plays the game,” Melvin said. “There’s an expectation of how it needs to be played and he’s setting the example of that and guys have to fall in line.”
An All-Star in 2019, Chapman is hitting .247 and leads the Giants with 22 homers, 69 RBIs, 91 runs and 34 doubles. He is a four-time Gold Glove winner and has a .241 career average with 177 homers and 495 RBIs for Oakland (2017-21), Toronto (2022-23) and the Giants.
A California native, Chapman said he feels comfortable in the Bay Area. He batted back concerns that San Francisco is not an attractive place for free agents, sharing other players have reached out about joining the Giants after news of his new deal.
“I don’t think it’s going to be a hard sell,” Chapman said. “This organization is amazing. They do everything they can for the players. We have a lot of good players. I think that we’re going to continue to build here. I think that people will see that from the outside and I don’t see that ever being an issue.”
Snell, who started Thursday, agreed to a $62 million, two-year deal that also include a right to opt out after this season.
“The biggest and most important thing is when players play well somewhere, you have to really pay attention to it,” Boras said. “And I do. Because we want players to play well in the game and do well.”
Zaidi did not engage when asked about questions surrounding his future with the Giants, who entered 8 1/2 games out of a playoff spot.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
San Francisco Giants President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidi speaks during a news conference before a baseball game between the Giants and the Arizona Diamondbacks in San Francisco, Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
San Francisco Giants third baseman Matt Chapman, left, speaks next to attorney Scott Boras during a news conference before a baseball game between the Giants and the Arizona Diamondbacks in San Francisco, Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
San Francisco Giants third baseman Matt Chapman speaks during a news conference before a baseball game between the Giants and the Arizona Diamondbacks in San Francisco, Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI said Sunday it was investigating “what appears to be an attempted assassination” of Donald Trump at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida, just nine weeks after the Republican presidential nominee survived another such attempt.
The former president was safe and unharmed after the U.S. Secret Service opened fire at a man pointing an AK-style rifle into the club as Trump was on the course, three law enforcement officials said. The person dropped the weapon and fled in an SUV, and was later taken into custody in a neighboring county. The officials were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
An AK-style firearm was recovered at the scene near Trump International Golf Club West Palm Beach, two of the officials said. And no injuries were reported.
The incident was the latest jarring moment in a campaign year marked by unprecedented upheaval. It occurred roughly two months after Trump was shot during an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania, and a bullet grazed his ear. Only a week later, President Joe Biden withdrew from the race.
The golf course was partially shut down for Trump as he played, and agents were a few holes ahead of him when they noticed the person with the firearm, the officials said. There are several areas around the perimeter of the property where golfers are visible from the fence line. Secret Service agents and officers in golf carts and on ATVs generally secure the area several holes ahead and behind Trump when he golfs. Agents also usually bring an armored vehicle onto the course to quickly shelter Trump should a threat arise.
Trump had returned to Florida this weekend from a West Coast swing that included a Friday night rally in Las Vegas and a Utah fundraiser. His campaign had not advised Trump's plans for Sunday. He often spends the morning playing golf, before having lunch at the club, one of three he owns in the state.
The former president has had a stepped-up security footprint since the assassination attempt in July. When he has been at Trump Tower in New York, a lineup of dump trucks have parked in a wall outside the building. And at outdoor rallies, he now speaks from behind an enclosure of bulletproof glass.
Trump was returned safely after the incident to his private Mar-a-Lago club, where he resides in neighboring Palm Beach, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The White House said President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, had both been briefed and would be kept updated on the investigation. The White House added they were “relieved” to know Trump is safe.
Harris, in a statement said she was “glad” Trump was safe, adding that “violence has no place in America.”
In an X post, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C, one of Trump’s top congressional allies, said he had spoken with Trump after the incident and that Trump was in “good spirits” and was “one of the strongest people I’ve ever known."
Martin County Sheriff William D. Snyder said the suspect was apprehended within minutes of the FBI, Secret Service and Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office putting out a “very urgent BOLO” — or “be on the lookout” alert” detailing the specific vehicle sought, license plate number and occupant description.
Snyder said his deputies “immediately flooded” northbound I-95, deploying to every exit between the Palm Beach County line to the south and St. Lucie County line to the north.
“One of my road patrol units saw the vehicle, matched the tag and we set up on the vehicle,” Snyder said, “We pinched in on the car, got it safely stopped and got the driver in custody.”
Snyder told WPTV that the suspect "was not armed when we took him out of the car.”
The man had a calm, flat demeanor and showed little emotion when he was stopped by police, Snyder said, saying the suspect did not question why he was being pulled over.
“He never asked, ‘what is this about?’ Obviously, law enforcement with long rifles, blue lights, a lot going on. He never questioned it,” Snyder said.
Attorney General Merrick Garland has been briefed on the situation and is receiving regular updates about it, a Justice Department spokeswoman said.
The post by the Martin County Sheriff’s Office indicated the suspect was apprehended near Palm City, Florida, about a 45-mile drive north of Trump’s golf course. Northbound lanes of I-95 were shut down, the sheriff’s office said.
A message sent to campaign officials seeking information on the security status and location of Ohio Sen. JD Vance, Trump’s running mate, was not immediately returned.
Max Egusquiza, of Palm Beach, described the emergency response outside Trump’s West Palm Beach golf course.
“From what I saw 5 black unmarked SUVs blocked in a grey Mercedes in front of the golf course. There were about 20 or more cop cars flying from nearby streets,” he said.
Trump is supposed to speak about cryptocurrency live Monday night on the social media site X for the launch of his sons’ crypto platform. He’s expected to do that from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. The former president is scheduled to return to the campaign trail on Tuesday for a town hall in Flint, Michigan with his former press secretary, Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, followed by a campaign rally in New York on Long Island on Wednesday.
At the end of the week, he’s scheduled to attend and address the Israeli-American Council National Summit in Washington, D.C. and on Saturday hold a rally in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Associated Press writers Jill Colvin and Michael R. Sisak in New York, Meg Kinnard in Columbia, South Carolina and Lindsay Whitehurst contributed to this report.
FILE - Security agents talk at the entrance to former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate, March 31, 2023, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)
Sheriff vehicles are pictured near Trump International Golf Club, Sunday. Sept. 15, 2024, in West Palm Beach, Fla., after gunshots were reported in the vicinity of Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Stephanie Matat)
FILE - The motorcade for President Donald Trump arrives at Trump International Golf Club, Feb. 15, 2020, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at the Las Vegas Police Protective Association during a campaign stop, Saturday, Sept.14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump arrives at Harry Reid International Airport to board a plane after a campaign trip, Saturday, Sept.14, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
