When Philadelphia began spending money this off-season, I suggested that the best place for them to focus their finances would be on a multi-year deal for Pat Burrell. On Monday, the Phillies signed Burrell to a six-year, $50M contract. Burrell would not have been eligible for arbitration until after this season, so the deal buys out this year, all three arbitration seasons and two years of his potential free agency.

Burrell insisted upon a complete no-trade clause, though it was unlikely the Phillies would have traded him regardless. Philadelphia drafted Burrell out of the University of Miami with the first overall pick of the first round of the 1998 draft, and he's expressed a desire to spend his entire career with the organization. He made his major league debut with the Phillies in May of 2000. Burrell signed an $8M five-year deal when he was drafted, making this only his second contract with the team.

He'll reportedly receive $1M in 2003, $4M in 2004, $7M in 2005, $9.5M in 2006, $13M in 2007, and $14M in 2008, as well as a $1.5M signing bonus. In general, I like this contract and think it works well for both sides. The only thing I would change would be to make the final season of the deal an option year rather than guaranteed, as that would have given the Phillies more flexibility if he suddenly runs into horrible injury problems or if something else happens to decrease his value.

The 26-year-old's skills look excellent. His plate discipline continues to improve as he both upped his walk and contact rates last season. Likewise as he matures physically, his power continues to grow; I expect him to hit 50 homers within the next two years. He's not shown himself to be injury prone to date in his career, and I wouldn't expect him to run into difficulties until at least the final years of this deal. To insure his future health, the Phillies and Burrell should make it a priority to maintain his flexibility as he adds muscle mass.

In mid-January, Philadelphia settled on a one-year, $9.9M contract with the arbitration-eligible Kevin Millwood. Many people thought this was a stretch for the young pitcher, but I expect him to earn every penny. As I said when the Phillies acquired him, he's had few injury problems in the past and should continue to produce at a rate similar to that he displayed in 2002. Apparently, they would have liked to add Millwood to the list of players locked into multi-year deals, but he wanted a season to test the Phillie environment, which is fully understandable.

Last week, Placido Polanco, who was also arbitration-eligible, agreed to a one-year, $2.875M contract. I think he's more likely to maintain a BA in the .280's than to return to hitting .300, however the 27-year-old's power appears to be improving and position flexibility is intriguing. Polanco is expected to spend most of his time at second base in 2003, while also continuing to serve as a utility player to some extent.

Philadelphia settled with Ricky Ledee on an $850,000 one-year deal in mid-December. I think he's overpaid by a few hundred thousand, though I understand why they'd want to retain him. He generally maintains a solid walk rate and he offers them some power and a reserve centerfielder. However, the 29-year-old has failed to emerge as more than a barely acceptable offensive player in any of his five seasons in the majors.

The Phillies signed free agent Tyler Houston to a one-year, $1M contract in mid-January. Houston can reportedly earn an additional $25,000 for reaching 90 games played and every 5 games after that through 135, as well as $50,000 for 140, 145, and 150 games. He's expected to back-up David Bell at third and Jim Thome at first base, while providing the Phillies with a third catcher as well. The 32-year-old is another player that could really benefit from increasing his walk rate but in a limited number of at-bats he really offers his team a solid left-handed source of power.

Philadelphia has also added a few more players to the organization through minor league deals, including RHP Mike Fyhrie, OF-R Jeff Inglin, C-S Marcus Jensen, C-L Jesse Levis, and C-R Todd Pratt. Last season with Oakland's AAA Pacific Coast League affiliate at Sacramento, Fyhrie compiled a 68:23 K:BB with only 61 H and 4 HR allowed in 77.1 IP for a 2.33 ERA as a starter, though he suffered from some command problems in the majors. Fyhrie should give the Phillies some depth at AAA, and the 33-year-old could join the team as either a spot starter or reliever during the season.

The White Sox drafted Jeff Inglin out of the University of Southern California with their 16th round pick in the 1996 draft. Last season at AAA Charlotte in the International League, he hit .276 with a .305 OBP and .421 SLG on 42 H, 4 2B, and 6 HR with an 8:22 BB:K and 2/4 SB% in 152 AB, and then spent the second half of the season playing in Korea. The 27-year-old has displayed solid power potential and could be a possible reserve outfielder if the Phillies have injury troubles during the season.

Marcus Jensen has held AAAA catching credentials for the past half-dozen seasons. The 30-year-old possesses solid plate discipline skills and offers some power, but he's never been able to produce in the majors. I expect him to compete for the reserve job in Spring Training, but it will most likely go to Pratt.

Jesse Levis obtained his AAAA credential a decade ago. The defining feature of his offense is a 1.5 BB:K ratio, obtained with a .13 walk rate and very low strikeout rate. Unfortunately, he doesn't have any real power or speed and hasn't been able to make quality contact in the majors. I expect Jensen to fill any injury openings before the 34-year-old Levis.

While I suspect his 2002 .311 average will drop closer to the .295-.305 range in 2003, Pratt should continue to provide the Phillies with a solid back-up backstop. His power doesn't jump out in the limited number of at-bats he receives, but the 35-year-old really is quite a bargain for Philadelphia.