Baseball contracts check out the bonus room
BASEBALL
Creative contract perks are becoming routine in baseball negotiations, where vintage cars, interpreters or even pizza franchises may lure players.
When the Boston Red Sox offered Curt Schilling $8 million to pitch for them next season it might be assumed they did so with the expectation that he would stay in good enough shape to, you know, actually pitch.
Apparently not. Because the Red Sox also included a "conditioning bonus" that could earn the right-hander an additional $2 million if he stays trim enough all summer.
But even that didn't seal the deal. Before Schilling would sign, the team packed his new contract with more pork than a Fenway Frank, including six season tickets, a private suite for each home start and free day care for all games in Boston, among other things.
What's more, perk- and incentive-laden contracts like Schilling's are becoming the norm. With the average major league salary expected to top $3 million this year, agents and clubs are using bonuses of all kinds to reward a player's value.
"It's come a long way," agent Barry Axelrod said. "Things have changed."
As a result, players can earn extra money by winning Gold Gloves or Silver Bats. They can cash in based on how many times they come to the plate or how many innings they stay on the mound. There are incentives for games started, games finished and for how many days one manages to avoid the disabled list.
The San Diego Padres once promised reliever Alan Embree a $50,000 bonus if he were named the starting pitcher in the All-Star game, even though he had never been an All-Star and hadn't started a game since 1992.
Infielder Cesar Izturis' contract with the St. Louis Cardinals will pay him $50,000 if he is named most valuable player of the league division series.
There is no MVP award in the division series.
There are even deals to be had when it comes to lodging. About a dozen players -- including new Dodger Andruw Jones, Tampa Bay's Cliff Floyd and Kansas City's Jose Guillen -- have new contracts that promise them private suites when their teams travel. For pitcher Greg Maddux the Padres went a step further, giving him a suite on the road as well as a team-paid membership in the tony Del Mar Country Club.
That's not all. San Diego will give Maddux a $100,000 bonus if he wins the National League Cy Young or MVP award.
There are dozens of players who just have to get close to winning something to cash in.
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