Wells Inks $4.15 Deal

[3-2 Changeup]

Bet Wells gets traded at the July 31 deadline IF he pitches well AND Burnett comes back.


Pirates and Wells agree to $4.15 million contract

January 17, 2006

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Right-hander Kip Wells, the major league leader with 18 losses last season, passed up salary arbitration and agreed Tuesday to a $4.15 million contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Wells, who is eligible for free agency after the season, can make $270,000 in bonuses based on innings pitched. He gets $50,000 for 195 innings, $100,000 each for 200 and 205 innings and $25,000 for 210 innings.

The Pirates have no remaining arbitration-eligible players after also reaching agreements with left-hander Oliver Perez ($1.9 million), outfielder Craig Wilson ($3.3 million), right-hander Ryan Vogelsong ($555,000) and outfielder Jody Gerut ($875,000).

Wells was 8-18 with a 5.09 ERA last season, when he was the only NL pitcher to lose more than 16 games. He is a combined 13-25 the last two seasons after going 12-14 in 2002 and 10-9 in 2003, his first two seasons with Pittsburgh after being traded by the Chicago White Sox.

Despite Wells' poor season, the Pirates chose to bring him back because they concluded it would cost them more to sign a replacement starter on the open market who can pitch as many innings. Wells has averaged 179 innings since 2002.

Wells received the worst run support of any major league starter (3.07 runs) last season as the Pirates scored three runs or fewer in 23 of his 33 starts and were shut out four times.

[imgreat95]

how ridiculous is it that a guy who lost 18 games last season signed a contract paying him more than we have ever paid a pitcher for a single season??

[Baseball Guru]

So the going rate these days for a pitcher with a 5+ era and 18 losses is over 4 million?:notme:

Damn:nope:

[ed500]

this is horrible
now every losing sp can point to the Wells deal
if you lost less than 18 games you should get more than wells
insane
but that is MLB

[Greymire]

I am glad that I am not the only one who thought that was insane (well, a few of the guys at work did as well). That aid, here is the deal as well. He has 55 winns and 69 losses with a 4.36 era. He is good for 170 to 190 innings if healthy. Potential? Tons, but has never consistently put it together. Ted Lilly had already been given 4 million by the Jays and his career stats are 44 wins 45 losses and a 4.67 era. Lilly will be 30 this year and Kip will be 29. Looking at the career stats, the money and stats are not that far apart. I guess that is why DL figured to go with what we had for now and hope that Kip can rebound. If he can get close to 12 wins (his career high) or even improve on that, than the money will be well spent (I cant believe I am saying that..it goes to show how rediculous they pay scale has gotten in all of pro sports).

[imgreat95]

In the end, as crazy as this sounds, I bet we saved money. I would be willing to bet that Wells would have gotten more than this in arbitration.

[00_Agent]

This is what arbitration has done to the game. They have an absolutely horrid arbitration system that forces teams like the Pirates into this sort of deal.

4.15 million dollars is far too much for Wells at this point. He has done nothing to earn it; one would think the owners would be able to point to insane contracts like this when they negotiate and get something done, but they let the players union get too powerful, and everyone's been paying the consequences for the last 12 years or so.

00