Indians Sign Sabathia to 4-Year Deal <br>Sat Feb
23, 4:00 PM ET <br><br>WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - The
Cleveland Indians signed left-hander C.C. Sabathia to a
$9.5 million, four-year contract Saturday, rewarding
their most consistent pitcher last season.<br><br>
<br>The contract, which contains a club option for a
fifth year, could be worth up to $19.75 million over
five years.<br><br>"It's been like a whirlwind,"
Sabathia said. "Last year going in, I didn't even know if
I was going to make the team. Now I'm getting a
long-term deal."<br><br>Sabathia, the Indians' No. 1 pick
in the 1998 draft, went 17-5 with a 4.39 ERA in 33
starts last season and finished second to Seattle's
Ichiro Suzuki in the AL Rookie of the Year
voting.<br><br>Indians general manager Mark Shapiro called the contract
unprecedented for someone as young as Sabathia, who turned 21
last July 21.<br><br>"It's a tremendous burden for a
person of his age, but we're confident he can handle it
on and off the field," Shapiro said.<br><br>Sabathia
was one of the major reasons the Indians were able to
win the AL Central last season. He tied for sixth in
the league in wins, held opponents to a .228 batting
average and recorded 171 strikeouts in 180 1-3 innings.
Sabathia became the youngest pitcher ever to win an AL
division series when he beat Seattle in Game
3.<br><br>Both the Indians and Sabathia took some risks with the
contract. The Indians possibly are committing to a player
with only one year in the majors and gambling that
Sabathia won't get injured.<br><br>"In every situation,
you weigh the risk versus the reward," Shapiro said.
"More important, you examine the person. We can live
with the risk."<br><br>Projecting what a young pitcher
will do in the future also is difficult, as the
Indians learned with right-hander Jaret
Wright.<br><br>Following the 1998 season, the Indians signed Wright, who
went 20-13 in his first two seasons, to a four-year
contract with an option for a fifth year. Since then, he's
13-16, has had two shoulder operations the last two
years and is a question mark going into this
season.<br><br>The Indians have had more success with right-hander
Bartolo Colon, who signed a four-year deal with a club
option before the 1999 season. Colon is 47-25 since then
and has become a dominating
pitcher.<br><br>Meanwhile, Sabathia is giving up his arbitration years and
an opportunity for substantial raises. He would have
been eligible for arbitration after the 2003
season.<br><br>Shapiro and Sabathia's agent, Jeff Moorad, began
negotiations soon after last season ended. Moorad admitted
Sabathia might be underpaid during the
contract.<br><br>"There's always a risk of undercompensation when you lock
into a long-term deal, but C.C. felt the security was
important," Moorad said.<br><br>Sabathia gets a $1 million
signing bonus, $450,000 this year, $850,000 in 2003,
$2.45 million in 2004 and $4.5 million in 2005. The
Indians have a $7 million option for 2006 with a $250,000
buyout, a year that would become guaranteed if he pitches
405 innings in 2004 and 2005 or 540 innings from 2003
through 2005.<br><br>In addition, his salary for 2005 can
climb to $6 million and the option for 2006 can rise to
$9 million if he reaches certain levels of
performances.<br><br><a
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