Takashi Saito's contract with the Boston Red Sox is worth as much as $15 milliion
If former Dodgers closer Takashi Saito can remain healthy over the next two seasons, his contract with the Red Sox could be worth as much as $15 million.
Saito's one-year deal, which includes a club option for 2010, will pay him a guaranteed $1.5 million this season. He'll receive a $1-million bonus if he's on the active roster at any point this season.
The 38-year-old former All-Star, who missed two months last season because of elbow problems, can earn another $5 million in incentives based on games pitched and days spent on the active roster.
Saito will earn $500,000 if he appears in 50 games, an additional $500,000 for every five games he pitches thereafter, up to his 70th game. He'll also earn $500,000 for every 30 days he spends on the active roster.
The club option will be guaranteed for Saito's total 2009 earnings and will retain any incentive clauses he didn't meet in his first year of the deal.
Saito made the major-league minimum of $365,000 in 2006, $1.3 million (including incentives) in 2007 and $2 million last season. He rejected a contract offered to him by the Dodgers this winter that included a $2-million base salary and $200,000 in incentives.
-- Dylan Hernandez
Photo: Takashi Saito against the Chicago Cubs in Game 2 of the NLDS. Credit: Jamie Squire / Getty Images
