With Reed Baker-Whiting having just signed an extension, arguably the two most pressing contract situations are Paul Rothrock and Obed Vargas. Rothrock is due to be out of contract at end of 2025, while Vargas has an option for 2026 that has already been exercised.
Sounders GM Craig Waibel indicated that contract negotiations have already started with both.
“Those guys have some nice offers in front of them,” Waibel said last week. “It's just a matter of if we can find that final agreement.”
Here’s what we know about both situations:
Paul Rothrock
Back in 2023, Rothrock signed a first-team deal after a couple successful short-term loans from Tacoma. The initial contract only guaranteed him through that season and paid him the league minimum, but it included options for 2024 and 2025 which were obviously exercised. That deal runs out now and he’s due a significant raise.
A similar discussion happened last year and my understanding the two sides were pretty far apart, but Rothrock was effectively told that if he repeated his 2024 season that things would sort of take care of themselves.
Whether that has happened could be in the eye of the beholder. A year ago, Rothrock finished with eight goals and five assists in about 2,100 minutes across all competitions. This year, he’s on four goals and eight assists in about 2,400 minutes, but has also established himself more as a regular starter.
The last I heard, the two sides still differed pretty widely on what they felt was a fair offer, but that was also before the Sounders effectively made Rothrock the poster-child for their Leagues Cup run. When your coach compares you to Messi — regardless of how tongue-in-cheek it is — and you follow up by delivering, it’s fair to assume a payday is in the offing.
For the Sounders, I think they need to balance the reality that Rothrock is still a player whose counting stats don’t exactly jump off the page, but who also has earned the trust of the coaching staff. Even if he’s not an automatic starter when the team is fully fit, he still has a significant role to play.
For Rothrock, I am sure he wants to feel appreciated. He’s now 26 and has been playing for relative peanuts his entire adult life. I don’t begrudge him asking for what he thinks he’s worth. Not that it entirely matters, but Transfermarkt says that is €2 million.
What are his options? Rothrock won’t qualify for MLS free agency due to service-time requirements, but he will be free to sign anywhere else in the world. It's not hard to imagine some teams in the English Championship willing to take a chance on a player whose skills would seemingly fit in well there.
What's the likely outcome? It seems like both sides are sufficiently motivated to get a deal done. As long as the Sounders can make Rothrock's compensation work under the salary cap I don't see why he won't sign a longterm extension that leaves both sides feeling satisfied.
