The Astros reached an agreement with Billy Wagner on Wednesday for a three-year deal worth $27 million. I strongly approve of this deal. Despite his arm problems in 2000, Wagner has established himself as one of the top closers in the game. Houston needed to wrap up this contract before the start of the season in order to insure that he would not test free agency after the year.

The contract seems to be just about perfect for a closer these days. He will make $8 million for each of the three guaranteed years of the contract and the club holds a $9 million option for a fourth year, with a $3 million buyout. I like the length of the deal, as its short enough to guard against injury or a flare up of the arm problems he recently experienced (although from what I've heard, that seemed to be a one-time problem that should not bother him again). The option allows them to hold onto him for an extra year if he's still excelling.

Free agent pitcher Mark Wohlers signed with the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday. The two parties agreed to a two-year contract with a reported $8 million club option for a third year. If they do not exercise the option, they owe him a $1 million buyout. He will receive an $800,000 signing bonus, $200,000 in 2002 and $2 million in 2003. The contract also includes a clause that would give Wohlers an addition $2 million bonus if he becomes the Indians' closer.

Overall, I think that Cleveland overpaid for a setup man who has not pitched particularly effectively since his control crises. They certainly should not pick up that enormous option. I assume it was only included on the off chance they need to hold onto him in 2004 because he's become their closer.

Free agent Ricky Bottalico also signed on Wednesday, re-upping with Philadelphia shortly before the deadline for players who rejected arbitration to agree to deals with their former clubs. Bottalico agreed to a one-year $1.5 million dollar contract, which also includes some performance incentives that could raise its value.

He should return to the bullpen in basically the same setup/relief role he held last season. There is no reason to suspect that the Phillies would open up the closer's position for competition after Jose Mesa's success last year.

I think that Philadelphia probably paid him about what he's worth, and while there were potentially better options available, this is an acceptable move. Bottalico has likely seen the last of his closing days, but in the case of an emergency, Larry Bowa doesn't have to worry about using an unproven arm or the increasingly ineffective Turk Wendell.

Craig Counsell and the Arizona Diamondbacks agreed to a contract and also avoided arbitration. I would try to describe the details of the deal myself, but it appears to be so specific that I'm just going to quote the AP article:

"He gets a $50,000 signing bonus, $1.5 million this year, $2.3 million in 2003 and $3.15 million in 2004. The Diamondbacks have a $3.75 million option for 2005 with a $250,000 buyout, but they must exercise it after the 2003 season to get that price. If they wait until after 2004, the option price for 2005 would increase to $4.25 million."

"If they exercise the option after 2003, they would get an additional option for 2006 at $4.25 million."

"Counsell could also earn an additional $500,000 in performance bonuses in 2003 and $1 million in each of the remaining years of the contract."

Frankly, I think that a good bit of time was probably wasted on the details of the options, as they should never be executed. Counsell was certainly a key piece of Arizona's success last season. He was able to step up when Jay Bell faltered and perform well. He provides the roster a good deal of flexibility, and there is probably something to be said for his clubhouse contributions.

However, he's far from irreplaceable so this salary is likely a bit high, especially for a team as publicly concerned about money problems as the Diamondbacks. The guaranteed portion of the deal is a nice length since he's not currently blocking anyone in the minors. If Arizona can move Womack, then the deal starts to look better as Counsell could then play pretty much full-time at SS. Alex Cintron was considered one of their best prospects last year, but at this point he doesn't project to more than a backup middle infielder. With the current roster, I would expect Counsell's role to be pretty much the same as it was at the end of last season.

I neglected to mention in yesterday's article that Juan Gonzalez's contract with the Rangers is conditional upon passing a physical. The details of what will happen with the insurance contract his agents took out on him are also unresolved, but neither issue is expected to cause the deal to fall apart.