DALLAS — Catcher Chris Iannetta was out, separated from his cellphone. He wasn’t expecting a text message about an Angels personnel decision. What, he was asked, do you think about becoming a teammate with Albert Pujols?
“Wow!”
That about sums it up. In the span of three hours Thursday morning, the Angels marked the end of the recession and “won” the winter meetings by signing Pujols and top free-agent pitcher C.J. Wilson.
Pujols received a 10-year, $254 million deal with a complete no-trade clause and no deferrals. Wilson, a Southern California native, signed a five-year, $77.5 million contract with veto power over trades for two seasons and an eight-team no-trade clause thereafter.
Watching the news scroll across the bottom of the TV screen from his hotel suite, Rockies general manager Dan O’Dowd called the contracts “mind-blowing.”
Cardinals fans are sick. They lost their modern-day Stan Musial, a man whose statue was supposed to stand in front of Busch Stadium. In the end, Pujols went to the highest bidder, the Angels exceeding the Cardinals’ offer by roughly $40 million.
“This is a special day,” said Angels GM Jerry Dipoto, whose club didn’t even begin negotiating with Pujols’ camp until Wednesday.
Dipoto, a former Rockies closer, sealed the deal around 5:30 a.m. Angels assistant GM Scott Servais said his wife texted: “Is this real?”
The Angels were driven by failure. Owner Arte Moreno was tired of finishing second to the Rangers in the AL West and runner-up on top free agents. They lost out on outfielder Carl Crawford, first baseman Mark Teixeira and pitcher CC Sabathia in recent years.
“Are we going to counter?” said Yankees GM Brian Cashman, preparing the one-liner. “Well, we did take two guys in the Rule 5 draft.”
Competitive and impulsive, Moreno wasn’t taking no for an answer.
A quarter-billion for a 31-year-old slugger? No problem. Nearly $80 million for a pitcher who lost the All-Star Game and every start in the playoffs for the rival Rangers? No worries.
This was about winning, cementing a brand, fully escaping the Dodgers’ shadow. The concern about landing Pujols, who has performed at an MVP level for 11 consecutive seasons, is the term of the contract. He will be 41 when the second-richest deal in baseball history expires (only Alex Rodriguez’s current 10-year, $275 million is bigger). There’s no example of a player performing like a star that late in his career, save for Barry Bonds, who admitted to unknowingly using steroids.
Yet, for every argument against the contract’s length, there’s the scoreboard retort. Moreno wants a championship. Perhaps two. Will that, coupled with Pujols’ anticipated charge toward Bonds’ all-time home run record, be worthy of the investment?
“He’s an iconic player,” Dipoto said. “Sometimes when you have the opportunity, you have to take it.”
Footnotes: With Pujols, Wilson, Mark Buehrle, Heath Bell and Jose Reyes signed, first baseman Prince Fielder stands as the next coveted prize. Agent Scott Boras will likely seek a $200 million deal for Fielder, who has drawn interest from the Nationals, Mariners and Brewers. … Free-agent shortstop Jimmy Rollins could be an option for the Cardinals. … Shortstop Alex Gonzalez agreed to a contract with the Brewers, who are looking to improve their infield defense. … Not that the Angels and Marlins stole the headlines, but when new Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine declared that he “hated the Yankees,” it became the equivalent of agate type.
Troy E. Renck: 303-954-1301 or trenck@denverpost.com
Regal deal
A 10-year deal worth $254 million works out to $25,4 million a season. So, based on Pujols’ 2011 regular season with the Cardinals, here’s what the Angels will be paying him in 2012:
$172,789.11 per game (147 games played)
$43,868.70 per at-bat (579)
$686,486.40 per home run (37)
$146,820.80 per hit (173)
