January 16, 200620 yr Dontrelle's new deal worth guaranteed $4.35M By Jerry Crasnick ESPN.com Dontrelle Willis reached agreement with the Florida Marlins on a one-year, guaranteed $4.35 million contract, easily breaking the record for a starting pitcher in his first year of salary arbitration. Willis' deal includes an additional $200,000 in incentive bonuses that could bring the overall package to $4.55 million. Willis, 24, went 22-10 with a 2.63 ERA last year and finished second to St. Louis' Chris Carpenter in balloting for the National League Cy Young Award. His deal surpasses the previous high of $3.825 million by Toronto's Roy Halladay in 2003. "I'm kind of dumbfounded," Willis told ESPN.com. "I graduated from high school in 2000 and I'm a millionaire right now. I never even dreamed of being in this situation." Dodgers closer Eric Gagne and Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter both made $5 million in their first year of arbitration. That's the highest figure ever regardless of position category. The Marlins have elected to go year-by-year with Willis, who has a career record of 46-27 over three seasons, rather than try to sign him to a long-term deal. Agent Matt Sosnick was scheduled to exchange salary arbitration figures with the club Tuesday. By signing his contract Monday, Willis avoided a hearing with the club. Sosnick, who also represents Marlins starters Josh Johnson and Scott Olsen and prospect Ricky Nolasco, negotiated the deal over the course of 10 conversations with Florida general manager Admin Beinfest. "Our conversations were never heated or frustrated," Sosnick said. "We just tried to make progress with each call. Neither of us felt like we had to go down to the last five minutes tomorrow to try to make a point. Ultimately, it was Dontrelle's decision. He was anxious to have this put behind him." Jerry Crasnick covers Major League Baseball for ESPN Insider.
January 16, 200620 yr Author That's good, but what happened to us signing him to a long-term deal? We've still got his rights for the next 4 seasons. No need to go long-term with him after his best season. Buying high isn't great strategy. I'd suspect long-term will come next season with both him and Cabrera.
January 16, 200620 yr That's good, but what happened to us signing him to a long-term deal? We've still got his rights for the next 4 seasons. No need to go long-term with him after his best season. Buying high isn't great strategy. I'd suspect long-term will come next season with both him and Cabrera. That isn't how Beinfestball works. :mischief
January 16, 200620 yr Author That's good, but what happened to us signing him to a long-term deal? We've still got his rights for the next 4 seasons. No need to go long-term with him after his best season. Buying high isn't great strategy. I'd suspect long-term will come next season with both him and Cabrera. That isn't how Beinfestball works. :mischief Well, I'm also hoping Beinfestball takes the nation's capital by storm.
January 16, 200620 yr That's good, but what happened to us signing him to a long-term deal? We've still got his rights for the next 4 seasons. No need to go long-term with him after his best season. Buying high isn't great strategy. I'd suspect long-term will come next season with both him and Cabrera. That isn't how Beinfestball works. :mischief Well, I'm also hoping Beinfestball takes the nation's capital by storm. :mischief
January 16, 200620 yr Couldn't have happened to a better guy. Congrats, D-Train! This means that any multiyear deal after next season has to be worth at least $5 million per season. If he has another monster season they'll probably go three years for at least $18 million. Will the record set by any player by Jeter and Gagne be broken by Miggy next year (assuming they don't come to a multi-year agreement)?
January 16, 200620 yr I am kinda disappointed they didn't go long term. Dontrelle has become a household name, they should go long term, if he has a couple of more great seasons this is going to come back to bite them where the sun doesn't shine, and FAST. I know you guys said that we have four more years of Dontrelle, but we should reward him.
January 16, 200620 yr They said Jeter and Gagne had the record for 5 mill a year for a first year arby player but if memory serves didn't the Cardinals lock Pujols to a 10 year 100 million contract after his 3rd year or is the record for a player getting only a one year contract.
January 17, 200620 yr They said Jeter and Gagne had the record for 5 mill a year for a first year arby player but if memory serves didn't the Cardinals lock Pujols to a 10 year 100 million contract after his 3rd year or is the record for a player getting only a one year contract. The record is for a player getting a one year contract in the first year of arbitration.
January 17, 200620 yr Fantastic news for Dontrelle and the Marlins. He got a bit more than estimated, which is a surprise considering the cost cutting mode the team is in right now. I'm very happy for him. He certainly deserves it and it couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.
January 17, 200620 yr That's good, but what happened to us signing him to a long-term deal? We've still got his rights for the next 4 seasons. No need to go long-term with him after his best season. Buying high isn't great strategy. I'd suspect long-term will come next season with both him and Cabrera. That isn't how Beinfestball works. :mischief Well, I'm also hoping Beinfestball takes the nation's capital by storm. :plain
January 17, 200620 yr Author That's good, but what happened to us signing him to a long-term deal? We've still got his rights for the next 4 seasons. No need to go long-term with him after his best season. Buying high isn't great strategy. I'd suspect long-term will come next season with both him and Cabrera. That isn't how Beinfestball works. :mischief Well, I'm also hoping Beinfestball takes the nation's capital by storm. :plain Weren't you the one who made the same jokes over and over about the team only looking for lefthanded Venezuelan pitching during the firesale?
January 17, 200620 yr That's good, but what happened to us signing him to a long-term deal? We've still got his rights for the next 4 seasons. No need to go long-term with him after his best season. Buying high isn't great strategy. I'd suspect long-term will come next season with both him and Cabrera. That isn't how Beinfestball works. :mischief Well, I'm also hoping Beinfestball takes the nation's capital by storm. :plain Weren't you the one who made the same jokes over and over about the team only looking for lefthanded Venezuelan pitching during the firesale? :lol
January 17, 200620 yr From the Marlins website: Marlins avoid arbitration with Willis D-Train gets richest deal for first-year arbitration-eligible starter By Joe Frisaro / MLB.com MIAMI -- With the future of the organization up in the air, the Marlins are absolutely certain about one thing: They envision Dontrelle Willis being the anchor of the franchise. On Monday afternoon, the Marlins agreed to terms with Willis on a one-year, $4.35 million deal that can reach $4.55 million with incentives. The signing avoided the Marlins exchanging numbers with Willis' agent, Matt Sosnick, and is the richest contract in Major League history for a first-year arbitration-eligible starting pitcher. The previous high for a starter was $3.8 million, shared by pitchers Roy Halladay and Andy Pettitte, while Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter and Dodgers closer Eric Gagne both made $5 million in their first year of arbitration eligibility. Willis, 24, is a two-time All-Star and was the 2005 National League Cy Young Award runner-up to St. Louis' Chris Carpenter. In a remarkable third season, Willis paced the Major Leagues in wins, posting a 22-10 record and a 2.63 ERA, making 34 starts while logging 236 1/3 innings. The D-Train led the Majors with five shutouts and posted seven complete games. Locking up Willis to a one-year deal starts off the new year on a positive for the Marlins, an organization that is exploring relocation because no firm stadium deal is in place to keep the team in South Florida. It's been a hectic offseason for the Marlins, who have dramatically reduced payroll by trading away a number of their marquee players, including Carlos Delgado, Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell, Paul Lo Duca and Juan Pierre. Willis is not eligible for free agency until after the 2009 season, but indications are Florida is looking to retain the left-hander for the foreseeable future. From the outset, Marlins general manager Admin Beinfest had told Sosnick the team planned on being fair to Willis in contract talks. "Admin Beinfest said he would treat Dontrelle with respect and that he would be compensated fairly on how he pitched [in 2005]," Sosnick said. "I believe he kept his word. Admin did what he said he would do." Through the contract talks, Sosnick got the sense the Marlins see Willis on their team for years to come. But until a new stadium deal is finalized, either in South Florida or elsewhere, there is a reluctance by the team and players to make long-term commitments at this point. Since Willis is just entering the arbitration process, the organization and Sosnick were agreeable to signing for just one year. A resident of Alameda, Calif., Willis spends much of his offseason in South Florida. "He's very comfortable there," Sosnick said. "I just think he's not going anywhere [anytime soon]." Called up from Double-A in early May 2003, Willis was the NL Rookie of the Year that season, and he played a huge role in the Marlins winning the World Series. In his still relatively young Major League career, Willis has a 46-27 career record with a 3.27 ERA. He is three victories shy of matching A.J. Burnett's mark for most wins by a pitcher in Marlins history. Joe Frisaro is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. http://marlins.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/art...t=.jsp&c_id=fla
January 17, 200620 yr That's good, but what happened to us signing him to a long-term deal? We've still got his rights for the next 4 seasons. No need to go long-term with him after his best season. Buying high isn't great strategy. I'd suspect long-term will come next season with both him and Cabrera. Are you sure we control his rights for 4 more years? That doesn't sound right. I hope your right and apologies if i'm the only who's confused. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. I can't even imagine a Marlins team without D-Train or Miguel.
January 17, 200620 yr Author That's good, but what happened to us signing him to a long-term deal? We've still got his rights for the next 4 seasons. No need to go long-term with him after his best season. Buying high isn't great strategy. I'd suspect long-term will come next season with both him and Cabrera. Are you sure we control his rights for 4 more years? That doesn't sound right. I hope your right and apologies if i'm the only who's confused. Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. I can't even imagine a Marlins team without D-Train or Miguel. Yeah, through 2009.
January 17, 200620 yr That's a whole lot of money for a player with three years in the bigs, let alone a super-two. Wow. I'm glad they were able to avoid arbitration
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