Brewers sign Takashi Saito- 1 year/2 million; 40-man roster now full

[Invader3K]

Is anyone else completely stunned they got him for this cheap? He's a great reliever... Better than Gagne was when they gave him one year, 10 mil... And I defended that contract.

 

What an awesome off-season.

Yes, it does seem kind of surprising, like I alluded to earlier. It will be interesting to hear how exactly this deal came together.

[crewcrazy]

Saito only pitched a handful of innings in September, and seemed to be wishy-washy on whether he would play again this year when asked at the end of the season. I think I may have seen some rumors of him possibly heading back to Japan, but considering some of the teams that were reportedly interested (Yankees, Rays, etc.), I'm surprised the pricetag was so low, too.

[KCBrewerfan34]

Now if we can find a CF with a decent OBP, then we will be on to something http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

 

Got my 20 PAck I am stoked for the season.

[Teatoe993]

I'm gonna have to pick up a Saito player t-shirt before my trip to Japan in March. Anyone know what number he will wear?

[Ennder]

Now if we can find a CF with a decent OBP, then we will be on to something http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

 

Got my 20 PAck I am stoked for the season.

SS is a much more pressing need than CF.

[hawing]

I'm gonna have to pick up a Saito player t-shirt before my trip to Japan in March. Anyone know what number he will wear?

Neither Saito nor a number is listed on the brewers.com 40-man roster page as of this morning; but I would be surprised if the number weren't available before March.

 

Fun 40-man roster fact: Pat Egan will apparently wear #52, no doubt to cash in on that Chris Smith mojo.

[patrickgpe]

he wore 40 in atlanta which is available i believe.

[reillymcshane]

Now if we can find a CF with a decent OBP, then we will be on to something http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

 

Got my 20 PAck I am stoked for the season.

SS is a much more pressing need than CF.

Totally agree. I can live with a crappy hitting CF who plays great defense. But a crappy hitting shortstop who plays crappy defense isn't my cup of tea. Hopefully we can improve the position.

[TooLiveBrew]

he wore 40 in atlanta which is available i believe.

44 with LA, 24 with Boston, & 40 with Atlanta. Not sure what number he'll choose, but I think it's a safe bet there'll be a 4 in it. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[PrinceEatMeat]

he wore 40 in atlanta which is available i believe.

44 with LA, 24 with Boston, & 40 with Atlanta. Not sure what number he'll choose, but I think it's a safe bet there'll be a 4 in it. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

44 is retired, Gamel is 24, so I guess 40 since Macha is gone.

[BrewCrewForever]

If Saito wears #40 and pitches to his career numbers he can wash away the memories of Macha.

[clancyphile]

The bullpen could be better:

 

Closer: Axford

Setup: Braddock

SR: Stetter/Saito

MR: Hawkins/Loe

LR: Parra

[TooLiveBrew]

clancy, did you mean the bullpen couldn't be better?

 

 

Tom posted some details of the Saito contract today, and an estimate on the current total payroll.

 

The one-year free agent deal that the Brewers gave reliever Takashi Saito will pay him a $1.75 million base salary with the chance to earn an additional $1.5 million in performance bonuses and days on the active roster.

 

Saito can earn $50,000 each for 15, 20, 25 and 30 games; $100,000 each for 35, 40 and 50 games; $150,000 for 50 and 55 games; and $200,000 for 60 games. Last season, he appeared in 56 games with Atlanta but soon will be 41 and has had some arm issues in recent years.

 

Saito also can earn $100,000 each for 30, 60, 90, 120 and 150 days on the active roster. Obviously, the Brewers are protecting themselves against Saito being injured and unavailable. If he stays healthy and productive, he will earn his bonuses.

So, adding it all up, you have $50 million in signed contracts, the $2.25 million in buyouts minus the money supplied by KC, about $26 million in arbitration settlements and $6 million in other contracts to fill the roster. Add it all up and you come to just over $84 million in player payroll.

[ramssuperbowl99]

Are the Brewers allowed to offer Saito arbitration after the season? If he's type A again we could get a 1st/2nd rounder and a supplemental pick.

[Outlander]

That might be a little risky considering his age but I wouldn't be surprised if he retired after this year anyways.

[thumperden]

Salaries

Salaries may not be complete (especially pre-1985) and may
not include some earned bonuses

Year	Age	Team	Salary	Sources	Notes
2007	37	Los Angeles Dodgers	$1,000,000
2008	38	Los Angeles Dodgers	$2,000,000
2009	39	Boston Red Sox	$1,500,000
		Earliest Arb Eligible: 2011, Earliest Free Agent: 2012
Career to date (may be incomplete)			$7,700,000

Just
saw this at baseball-reference.com on
Saito.


(bumped up font size in table
--1992)

[Mass Haas]

Saito sets sights on 60 appearances in 2011

KAWASAKI — Japanese right-handed reliever Takashi Saito has one immediate goal as he braces for the 2011 season with his new team the Milwaukee Brewers: He wants to pitch in at least 60 games this year.

 

‘‘I haven’t pitched in 60 games in a while,’’ Saito said Tuesday. He signed a one-year free agent deal with the Brewers this offseason. ‘‘As I get older, it gets more difficult to do this, but I want to at least make this my goal,’’ Saito, who turns 41 next month, said.

 

The last time Saito pitched in 60 games was in 2007, when he had 63 relief appearances for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He pitched in 72 games in his rookie season in the majors in 2006.

 

Last season, Saito struggled with a right shoulder injury and hurt his left hamstring as a result of overcompensating for his injured shoulder. He went 2-3 with a save and a 2.83 ERA in 56 appearances for the Atlanta Braves in 2010.

 

‘‘If I can work on solidifying my footing, I think I can contribute to the team,’’ said Saito, who did some light running after working on his pitches in practice.

 

The Brewers, who have been busy this winter bolstering their team with several offseason transactions, including Shaun Marcum from the Toronto Blue Jays and Zack Greinke from the Kansas City Royals, will be Saito’s fourth major league team.

 

‘‘As far as the potential of our team is concerned, there is a lot to look forward to, and I will enjoy playing baseball for a team like this one,’’ he said.