Cole Hamels signs 3-year deal

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ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reports that the contract will pay Hamels $4.35 million this year, $6.65 million in 2010 and $9.5 million in 2011.

 

If Hamels wins the Cy Young Award, his base salary would increase by $500,000 the following season. If he places second or third in the Cy Young voting, the contract would increase by $250,000 in the following season.

Not sure if this deal makes much sense. I guess the Phillies get a little break on money, but it doesn't buy out any free agent years. Link

 

Edit: Looks like he is even going to have a year of arbitration left after the contract. I am guessing he is a Super-2 this year.

[chrisisoutrunning]

I'm pretty sure this contract will go through his 3 arbitration years. He didn't get called up until May 2006, so he wouldn't have qualified for Super-2 status and this would have been his first go around with arbitration this year.

 

Personally I think the Phillies will get the better end of this deal if Hamels stays healthy and pitches the way he has the past couple of years (and they'll come out even better if he gets better). But as always, if Hamels blows out his arm, Phillies lose, Hamels walks away with $20 million guaranteed. I'm also not quite sure why they couldn't have at least got an option year to take up one year of free agency, I thought that was part of the point of signing multi-year deals with a guy pre-arbitration or in his first year of arbitration.

 

If he stays healthy and progresses like a young pitcher normally does, I could see him making himself $100 million+ since he'll be turning 28 a couple of months after the end of this contract...

 

Edit: I'm an idiot, at least according to MLBTradeRumors he's a Super 2. I guess I'm slightly confused, both about why you would give someone a guaranteed contract that doesn't go through all of their arbitration years, and the Super 2 thing, I think I get it, evidently the Phillies didn't keep him down in the minors long enough into May in 2006.

[GAME05]

maybe it was a play by his agent, knowing that if Hamels does stay healthy, he'll make $10 M in that last year of arbitration instead of the $7 he's getting now. yet if he does get injured, he's still got a healthy $20M in the bank.

 

it seems like in the end, signing guys through at least most of their arby years is still beneficial to the club. plus maybe it's also a good-faith move by the Phillies. i've heard interviews by Hamels saying he respects players who stick with their clubs their whole career and how they become heroes in their respective cities. He listed Gywnn Sr. as a player he really admired growing up.

[ILuvDaBush]

I have to think the Phils didn't want to ruffle the feathers of their postseson MVP. Considering how poorly they handled the Ryan Howard arbitration process last year (and the subsequent schism that has since formed between Howard and the org.), I can't say I find fault with this course of action. It gets him signed and obviously it keeps him happy as well.