Tentative Deal Is Reached Between Bonds and Giants : Baseball: The six-year, $43-million contract would be the sport’s richest ever. Announcement expected tonight.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The $100 million that the new owners of the San Francisco Giants spent to buy the team obviously didn’t empty their bank accounts.
They reached tentative agreement Saturday night with free agent left fielder Barry Bonds on a contract believed to be the largest in baseball history.
The terms were not announced, but it is believed Bonds agreed to a six-year contract for $43 million, eclipsing Cal Ripken Jr.’s five-year, $32.5-million contract with the Baltimore Orioles, Ryan Sandberg’s four-year, $28.4-million contract with the Chicago Cubs and Kirby Puckett’s five-year, $30-million contract with the Minnesota Twins.
The $43 million also eclipses the 1992 payrolls of every major league team except the Toronto Blue Jays ($49 million), Oakland Athletics ($47 million) and New York Mets ($44 million), based on the figures recently released by the owners’ Player Relations Committee.
“One thing is for sure,†Dodger Manager Tom Lasorda said. “When he cashes the checks, he won’t count it, he’ll weigh it.â€
The arrangement, negotiated between Dennis Gilbert, who represents Bonds, and Peter Magowan, leader of the group expected to be officially approved here as the club’s owners, was announced on the unofficial opening night of the winter baseball meetings, but more than the terms were missing.
Neither Gilbert nor any official of the Giants--both Magowan and General Manager Bob Quinn were still in the Bay Area--accepted any questions. Matt Fisher, the club’s director of media relations, said in a brief statement that the tentative agreement was subject to completion of contract language.
The Giants might simply have wanted to make the announcement with a flourish today, when Bonds will be flown in and the club’s top officials will arrive from San Francisco, but a media leak forced the premature announcement. A news conference is scheduled tonight.
“The Giants want to make the announcement, and they deserve to make the announcement,†was all Gilbert would say.
Sources, however, said the deal was virtually completed Tuesday, when Quinn was hired as the club’s general manager and Magowan, after several preliminary discussions with Gilbert, formalized his offer.
The New York Yankees had made a five-year, $36-million proposal, General Manager Gene Michael said.
“They asked for six years, and I said, ‘You can have six years if you take it out of the $36 million,’ †Michael said Saturday night. “Thirty-six was our number. I mean, you have to draw some lines. Nobody knows where it’s (the increase in free-agent salaries) going to stop.
Bonds, 28, made $4.7 million in his sixth season with the Pittsburgh Pirates, winning the National League’s most valuable player award for the second time in the last three years. It was thought that the Atlanta Braves would be the highest bidder for his services, but General Manager John Schuerholz said the Braves never made an offer and informed Gilbert on Monday that they wouldn’t because “of cost containment and roster management.â€
Schuerholz shrugged when asked about the impact of a $43-million contract on future signings and arbitration decisions.
The record agreement could influence a Monday vote by the owners on whether to reopen collective bargaining talks with the players union now or wait until that contract expires after the 1993 season to pursue changes in the compensation system.
Bobby Bonds, Barry’s father, made his major league debut with the Giants. Willie Mays, who still works for the club, is Barry Bonds’ godfather. Bonds wears No. 24 in honor of Mays. A longtime family friend, Dusty Baker, might become the Giants’ new manager.
Bonds will also join Will Clark and Matt Williams in restoring the Pacific Sock Exchange, dismantled when Kevin Mitchell was traded before last season.
“They’re not only acquiring one of the best players in the National League, but he makes Williams a much better hitter, too,†Lasorda said. “When they had Mitchell, you couldn’t pitch around Williams. Last year, you could.â€
The result was Williams’ poorest season, during which he batted .227 with 66 runs batted in.
Career Statistics
Year, Team R HR RBI Avg. 1986 Pirates 72 16 48 .223 1987 Pirates 99 25 59 .261 1988 Pirates 97 24 58 .283 1989 Pirates 96 19 58 .248 1990 Pirates 104 33 114 .301 1991 Pirates 95 25 116 .292 1992 Pirates 109 34 103 .311 Totals 672 176 556 .275
*
PLAYOFFS
Year, Opp. R HR RBI Avg. 1990 Reds 4 0 1 .167 1991 Braves 1 0 0 .148 1992 Braves 5 1 2 .261 Totals 10 1 3 .191
Go beyond the scoreboard
Get the latest on L.A.'s teams in the daily Sports Report newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
