Dodgers Tip Brown Derby

NASHVILLE —  While the Dodgers and his agent were announcing that pitcher Kevin Brown had become the highest-paid player in baseball history Saturday, the man of the moment was relaxing with his family in Macon, Ga.

Brown didn’t attend the news conference during the winter meetings here because he is overseeing construction of a $4-million home in Macon. He certainly can afford it, especially after signing a record seven-year, $105-million contract to become the newest member of the new-look Dodgers.

In his first public comments since joining the club, the game’s first $100-million player told The Times he is eager to begin working at Chavez Ravine.

“It’s really a relief to get the whole thing over with and to know where I’m going to be for the rest of my career, to be able to have that type of stability for me and my family,” Brown said during a phone interview. “It’s kind of a hard process when you’re trying to make a decision as big as this, something that’s going to affect the life of your family, you want to take time to make sure you’re making the right decision.

“I don’t have any doubts about this because the Dodgers made us feel comfortable right from the start. I know that this [Los Angeles] is the place I should be.”

The Dodgers convinced Brown with more than money.

Brown and his agent, Scott Boras, said that among the teams in contention for Brown, the Dodgers did the best job of addressing the pitcher’s concerns about being with his family during the season. The Dodgers agreed to charter a jet to fly Brown’s wife Candace and their sons, Ridge and Grayson, to Los Angeles 12 times a season.

“And the Dodgers were far ahead of everyone in that area,” Boras said. “They took an 8 1/2-hour trip and made it a five-hour trip [with charters instead of commercial flights]. But it was even more than that.

“The moment we told Fox about Kevin’s concerns, they started working on a plan to make this work. When we met with them [at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday], they gave us details about flight schedules, about the time it would take to fly into Burbank instead of LAX and even about what type of plane would be used.”

Brown noticed.

“We were looking at teams closer to home because my wife has always had to bear the largest part of the burden of raising the kids during the season,” Brown said. “Being with the Padres last season, it was difficult being away from them. But the Dodgers made it easier on my wife and kids to come out there more often, a lot easier than I thought it could be.”

Brown said Dodger management also addressed his other big concerns, competing on the field and financially. After his meetings with the Dodger recruiting team, which included General Manager Kevin Malone, President Bob Graziano and their Fox Group superiors, Brown said he became convinced the Dodgers would do what it takes to get back on top.

“There’s no doubt that that’s important to me,” Brown said. “Kevin Malone and the Dodgers are focused on winning again like the Dodgers used to win. The Dodgers have a lot of history and a tradition of winning, and I’m going to do whatever I can to help bring that back.

“The Dodgers also are willing to go into the marketplace and go after players they think can help them. That’s important because you need to stay competitive in the marketplace to be competitive on the field, that’s just the way it is, and the Dodgers are committed to that.”

The Padres are seemingly taking the opposite route, which was among the reasons Brown moved north.

“To be honest with you, the Padres were a little far down the line in terms of my final choices,” Brown said of his former club, which made him an 11th-hour offer of six years, $60 million. “The moves that they made, or didn’t make, made it harder to go back there.”

Brown, who made $4.8 million last season, said he is eager to start the season and show Dodger fans what he’s all about.

“I don’t know what anybody expects, but I know what I can do, and I know I leave it out there on the field,” Brown said. “You can have good days and you can have bad days, but the one constant is what you do out there on the field, and that’s not going to change.

“As for [being the first $100-million player], that really hasn’t sunk in yet. I really never imagined ever getting to this point, and I’m not sure I ever will. All I know is that it gives you a real sense of pride to have people believe in you the way the Dodgers have shown they believe in me.”

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Kevin Brown By The Numbers

Career record in 12 seasons: 139-99

Most victories in season (’92 with Texas): 21

Most losses in season (’91 and ’93 with Texas): 12

Best ERA in season (’96 with Florida): 1.89

Most strikeouts in season (’98 with San Diego): 257

NL postseason record (‘97, ‘98): 4-1

World Series record (‘97, ‘98): 0-3

Top 5 Salaries

(by year, millions)

Kevin Brown

Dodgers: $15.0

Mo Vaughn

Angels: $13.3

Mike Piazza

Mets: $13.0

Pedro Martinez

Red Sox: $12.5

Greg Maddux

Braves: $11.5

Top 5 Salaries

(by deal, millions)

Kevin Brown

Dodgers: $105.0

Mike Piazza

Mets: $91.0

B. Williams

Yankees: $87.5

Mo Vaughn

Angels: $80.0

Pedro Martinez

Red Sox: $75.0

By Sport

(by year, millions)

Baseball

Kevin Brown, Dodgers: $15.0

Football

Steve Young, 49ers: $10.0

Basketball

Michael Jordan, Bulls: $33.14

Hockey

Sergei Fedorov, Wings: $14.0

Opening Day

April 5, 1999

Kevin Brown (18.7) vs. Randy Johnson (19.11)

The Deal: 7 Years, $105 million

A $5-million signing bonus, $10 million next year and $15 million in each of the following six seasons of no-trade contract. Dodgers will give him use of private plane 12 times per season to commute to Los Angeles from Brown’s home in Macon, Ga.

The Team

“We feel like we logically evaluated the marketplace. We needed the player, we wanted the player and we made the commitment to our fans to becoming a winning team.”--KEVIN MALONE, Dodger general manager

The Man

“From the first moment we (Brown and his wife Candace) visited with the Dodgers in Los Angeles (Wednesday), we knew that they were not only committed to us but committed to winning.”--KEVIN BROWN, Dodger pitcher

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Big Deals

Brown’s deal is not the highest in sports. The Minnesota Timberwolves’ Kevin Garnett has the largest deal, at $126 million over six years. In fact, four NBA players have contracts that top Brown’s deal (in millions):

* 1. Kevin Garnett, Minnesota: $126

* 2. Shaquille O’Neal, Lakers: $120

* 3. Alonzo Mourning, Miami: $112

* 4. Shawn Kemp, Cleveland: $107

* 5. Juwan Howard, Washington: $100.8