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YES! YES! YES! Carmona locked up to 2011!

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_amon _ones

_amon _ones

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Great news on the Tribe front:

The Indians have signed right-hander Fausto Carmona to a multiyear contract extension, ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney is reporting.

The deal is guaranteed through 2011 with club options for 2012, 2013 and 2014. No monetary terms have been disclosed yet. The team will formally announce the extension at a 3 p.m. ET news conference.

The 24-year-old Carmona had a breakout year in 2007, winning 19 games for the AL Central champion Indians.

This season, the hard-throwing right-hander is 1-0 with a 0.69 ERA in two starts.

Carmona is the No. 2 starter in the Indians' rotation behind left-handed ace C.C. Sabathia. Sabathia, however, is a free agent after the season.

Sabathia rejected a preliminary offer from the Indians, and during spring training he suspended negotiations with the Indians until after the season. There's no guarantee he'll be back, and if he's not, Carmona will ascend into the No. 1 role.

Carmona joins a core group of young players -- along with Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez -- who have signed long-term deals with the Indians.

The right-hander, whose signature sinker is as good as any in the majors, pitched 215 innings last season. He and Sabathia were the first Cleveland teammates to win at least 19 games since Bob Lemon, Herb Score and Early Wynn did it in 1956.

Carmona, who finished second in the AL in ERA (3.06), began the '07 season with a loss to Chicago, extending his losing streak to 11 straight games. He finally snapped it by beating Minnesota's Johan Santana, but was optioned to the minor leagues when Cliff Lee came off the disabled list.

But before he reported to Triple-A Buffalo, Carmona was back when right-hander Jake Westbrook went down with an injury. He pitched his first complete game shutout in May, again beating Santana, a two-time Cy Young winner.

Carmona eventually won seven straight decisions, and then went 9-4 with a major league best 2.26 ERA in the second half.

The Dominican Republic native made a memorable debut in the postseason. Matched up with Andy Pettitte, he allowed the New York Yankees just three hits and no earned runs in nine innings, pitching the final two as tiny insects swarmed the infield at then-Jacobs Field.

Carmona's amazing ride finally ended in the ALCS, when he was roughed up in two starts by the Boston Red Sox, who rallied from a 3-1 deficit to win the series.
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http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3339427
 
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HELL YES!

I heard they had a press conference scheduled for later today. Time to buy that Carmona jersey...
 
Learning this, I wonder what CC is thinking...
 
I also like the fact that they are all club options...for 3 straight years. No being stuck with injuries (hopefully, not an issue), no worrying where he'll be...Tribe will have the first crack at him until 2015. He could anchor the staff for the next 7 years. Awesome work by Shapiro.
 
_amon _ones said:
I also like the fact that they are all club options...for 3 straight years. No being stuck with injuries (hopefully, not an issue), no worrying where he'll be...Tribe will have the first crack at him until 2015. He could anchor the staff for the next 7 years. Awesome work by Shapiro.
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Exactly. Once again, Shapiro shows he is the man.
 
A nice move indeed..Hopefully the sinker continues to sink now that he has the ca$h.
 
What was Carmona thinking going with 3 club options?

Nevertheless another brilliant move by Shap!

It will be very nice to know that we can count on the Indians to have the same core for the next several years.

Sizemore
Carmona
Martinez
Peralta
Hafner
even Westbrook

Gotta love it.
 
B Mac said:
What was Carmona thinking going with 3 club options?
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He was probably just overly excited when he saw all the numbers on his new checks. I believe he was only making around $450K this year.
 
From the Indians site...basically it's $43 to 48 million for the entire 7 years, with the first 4 years at $15 million :eek:...not bad for a 24 year old who was 4th in the Cy voting. I would rep Shapiro if I could.

CLEVELAND -- Fausto Carmona's first full season in the Indians rotation saw him win 19 games and finish fourth in the American League Cy Young Award voting.
Where can Carmona go from there? The Tribe can't wait to find out.

The Indians on Thursday signed Carmona to a historic long-term contract that has the potential to be seven years long. The first four years of the pact, worth $15 million, are guaranteed, with three individual club options for 2012, '13 and '14 tacked on.

If the deal goes the distance, Carmona will earn $43 million over the seven years, with escalators pushing its potential value to $48 million.

It is the highest-ever guarantee to a pre-arbitration-eligible starting pitcher and the highest-ever guarantee to a starting pitcher with only one full year of service time. It is similar to the contract the Rays recently gave to starter James Shields, albeit with a higher potential value.

Carmona, 24, wasn't even expected to be in the Indians rotation at the outset of last season. An abdominal injury to Cliff Lee opened up a spot for him out of Spring Training, and a similar injury to Jake Westbrook in May allowed him to stay.

It's safe to say Carmona is in the mix for good now. He was outstanding in 2007, going 19-8 with a 3.06 ERA in 32 starts. He was phenomenal in the AL Division Series against the Yankees but labored in the AL Championship Series in two starts at Fenway Park.

Carmona's ERA was the second-lowest in the AL, behind the Angels' John Lackey (3.01). And the 19 wins, the same number posted by staff ace C.C. Sabathia, were the most by an Indians pitcher since Bert Blyleven's 19 wins in 1984.

With potential free agent Sabathia's contract status still in limbo, Carmona might be counted on to be the new ace of the staff in 2009 and beyond. This deal ensures he'll have financial stability if and when that becomes the case.

In the early stages of '08, Carmona has shown no signs of any letup from his breakout season. He is 1-0 with a 0.69 ERA in two starts, against the White Sox and Angels.

The Indians signed Carmona and placed him in their Dominican Republic academy in December 2000, when he was 17 years old. He made his big league debut in '06, working as both a starter and reliever that season.

Carmona has certainly come a long, long way from the disastrous week he spent as the Indians closer in the summer of '06. And now, it's safe to assume he'll be pitching in an Indians uniform for a long, long time to come.
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Source
 
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Great move by Shapiro! Fausto has the potential to be great for many years to come. Congrats to my favorite pitcher since May 07.
 
Thank God we locked him up long term now. If we would have waited till the end of this season he probably would have asked for twice as much. I remember watching him with the Lake County Captains back in 2003 when he was 17-4. His sinker is one of the top five pitches in baseball. I don't know why the Indians brought him up as a closer seeing as how he was a consistent starter all the way through the minors. Great move Shapiro, now I won't be nearly as sad to see C.C. go.
 
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