Sunday, January 31, 2010

Giants avoids arbitration for Brian Wilson

Henry Schulman
SFGate/San Francisco Chronicle
The Giants and closer Brian Wilson took the path of least resistance in agreeing to a 2010 contract Saturday, agreeing to split the difference of their arbitration filings and settle on $4,437,500.

That is halfway between the $4 million the Giants offered and the $4.85 million that the 27-year-old closer requested after saving 38 games in 45 chances last season. For that, he earned $480,000 and thus will get nearly 10 times as much in his first year of arbitration eligibility.

Given how close the two sides were in their official filings, their Solomon-like compromise was the least-surprising outcome. It was difficult to believe they would have ended up in a hearing room over $850,000, and for reasons they might explain shortly, they opted to produce a one-year contract rather than work out a multiyear deal.

Saturday's news leaves the Giants with one potential hearing, otherwise known as "The Doozy." Tim Lincecum is seeking $13 million. The Giants are offering $8 million. They still have plenty of time to work out an agreement before they would have a hearing sometime in February.

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