TORONTO — His new contract won't make the same ripple as Vernon Wells' deal, but first baseman Lyle Overbay's new four-year,
$24 million (all figures U.S.) contract with the Toronto Blue Jays speaks volumes about the value the team places on his left-handed bat.
Overbay, who was eligible for salary arbitration, reached agreement with the team late Friday, according to multiple sources.
Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi had no comment on the report, which first appeared on globesports.com on Saturday night, and Overbay could not be reached for comment. But the contract papers have been filed with the Major League Baseball Players Association, and an announcement is expected Sunday. "It's done," another Blue Jays source said.
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- Toronto Blue Jays
- Dave Bush
- Jason Frasor
- Gabe Gross
- Zach Jackson
- Reed Johnson
- Lyle Overbay
- Alex Rios
The deal, which will pay Overbay $4.2-million this season ($3.8 million of which will be paid out in the form of a signing bonus), $5.8-million in 2008 and $7-million each in 2009 and 2010, leaves the team with three arbitration-eligible players: Alex Rios, Reed Johnson and Scott Downs.
It's likely the Blue Jays will need to exchange salary figures with the players.
The Blue Jays started negotiations with Overbay just after New Year's Day, with an eye toward buying out the first two years of his free-agent eligibility.
Overbay, who was acquired at the winter meetings in December 2005, in a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers that sent Gabe Gross, Dave Bush and prospect Zach Jackson to the National League team — pitcher Ty Taubenheim also joined the Blue Jays as part of the trade — made clear at the end of the 2006 season that he was interested in signing a multi-year contract.
"You get your ownership backing you up, saying we need to up the payroll and get a couple more guys to be able to compete, that's what you want to hear," Overbay said at the end of the season. "There are sometimes teams that try to go out and compete but they're not really going to, but we were really close to being right there in it."
Overbay hit a career-high 22 home runs in 2006 — increasing his homer total for the fourth consecutive year — and finished fourth in the American League with 46 doubles. He hit .300 or better every month except April en route to a .312 average that was also the best of his career, and was part of a team of Major League players that toured Japan after the World Series.
Overbay, whose 133 doubles since 2004 are the most in the Major Leagues, was a force at the Rogers Centre, hitting .325 and belting 17 of his homers at home. He also provided steady defence at first base.
