PhoulBallz.com

Arbitration? Nah! The Phillies, who were rumored to be in talks with at least two of the three players they exchanged arbitration numbers with, regarding "long-term" contracts, announced Thursday afternoon that they had come to terms with starting pitcher Joe Blanton on a three-year contract, locking him up through the 2012 season. The contract will reportedly pay Blanton $7 million this coming season, $8.5 million in each of the two following seasons. The $7 million in 2010 is actually less than the Phillies initially offered Blanton, when the two sides exchanged numbers on Monday. Kudos to GM Rube! Nice deal. Blanton, who will be 29 years old for the entire 2010 season, finished the 2009 season with a 12-8 record and a 4.05 ERA. Since he was acquired from Oakland in 2008, Blanton is 18-8 with a 4.10 ERA, including the postseason. --------------------- In other news...I spoke very briefly today (long enough to get my request for an interview with the Shore Sports Report reje...

Phillies pitcher Chad Durbin agreed to a one-year contract, avoiding salary arbitration. The deal will pay Durbin $2.125 million. In two seasons with the Phillies, Durbin has a 7-6 record with a 3.55 ERA in 130 games. Carlos Ruiz, Shane Victorino and Joe Blanton remain as Phillies who are arbitration eligible. ------------------- Jimmy Rollins and his girlfriend, Johari Smith, are planning to be married this coming weekend. It has been a good offseason for Phillies in this aspect, as Shane Victorino also got married . Jimmy was a member of the wedding party for Shane, so expect that Shane will be a member of Jimmy's wedding party. Other Phillies teammates, such as Ryan Howard, are expected to be in attendance for the Rollins nuptuals as well. The wedding is scheduled to be held in the Cayman Islands, where a 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck early Tuesday, off the coast. Reports on damage or aftershocks are not available as of this writing. Update- CBS 3 reported shortly after noon t...

The Sunday School series is pre-empted due to #6 news. Ryan Howard has officially avoided arbitration and signed a 3-year contract with our Phillies, sources confirmed. General Manager Ruben Amaro said, Sunday, “We're very pleased to have avoided the arbitration process, not just for this year, but also for the next two. Ryan is clearly one of the top power hitters and run producers in the major leagues and is a very important part of our championship club.” Ryan's contract breaks down this way...$15 million in 2009, $19 million in 2010 and $20 million in 2011. It is also packed with incentive bonuses, including one of the most ridiculous we could have expected to see- $50,000 for winning the Gold Glove Award. Seriously? Ryan Howard has a GOLD GLOVE incentive in his contract? Is this a joke? With that never reachable incentive listed, the Phils should have included some of the following bonuses for Howard. $50,000 for winning the MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss $51,000 for winnin...

According to recent reports, the Phillies are confident that they can avoid arbitration with Ryan Howard. There is no confirmation whether the agreement would be a one-year or a multi-year deal. If an agreement can not be reached in the coming days, a panel of 3 arbitrators will hear arguments from both the team and the player, next week, and decide on either the Phillies' offer of $14 million, or Howard's requested $18 million. Two local BC Sports Collectibles will be hosting Phillies player autograph signings this week. BC Sports in the King of Prussia Mall will have Chris Coste signing autographs this Wednesday night, 2/4 at 6:30pm. And on Saturday, 2/7, Jamie Moyer will be at the Oxford Valley Mall starting at noon. There are 11 days till the 63rd year of spring training baseball begins in Clearwater, Florida. Jamie Moyer is 46 years old. Ryan Madson has changed his jersey number from 63 to 46. I have no idea if those numbers are all related, but this is a nice little parag...

The baseball world is buzzing this week with arbitration talk and World Baseball Classic roster announcements. Firstly, Tuesday was the day when players and teams exchange dollar numbers for arbitration. Reportedly, Ryan Howard is asking for $18 million, while the Phillies offered $14 million. So, if the two sides reach an arbitration hearing again this year, Howard would, at least, get a 40% raise. Wouldn't we all like to be guaranteed a 40% pay increase this year? While MVP-runner up Howard stayed headed toward arbitration, Ryan Madson , Joe Blanton and Shane Victorino have all come to terms with the Phillies on new contracts. Madson's deal is worth $12 million, with incentives, over 3 years. Shane's deal is for one year, and is for $3.125 million. Big Joe's contract is also a 1-year deal, worth $5.4 million. The remaining Phillies still up for arbitration, aside from Howard, are Jayson Werth and Chad Durbin . Werth is said to have requested $4 million, while...

On Saturday, the Phillies signed Cole Hamels to a 3 year contract worth $20.5 million, thus avoiding arbitration with the star lefty. Greg Dobbs also signed a new 2-year deal, also avoiding arbitration. Many phans know a little about arbitration. It's one of those things we all hear about for a month or two of the year, we know there are hearings and some bargaining involved, but not everyone has a tight grasp on all the details. Players are eligible for arbitration when they (1) have as many as 3, but less than 6, years of major league service; (2) a player has filed for free agency, and their team makes an offer of arbitration and the player accepts; (3) the player is a "Super 2", meaning- the player is among the top 17% of players and has more than 2, but less than 3 years of service. There are minimal criteria (86 days of service in the previous year) and cutoffs (2 years, 140 days) to be a "Super 2". The requirements for teams in this process- (1) the team...