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Rays Sign Free Agent Burrell To 2-Year Deal Worth $16 Million

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By MARC LANCASTER | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 5, 2009

ST. PETERSBURG - The Rays have added the big bat they had sought since the end of the World Series—and it happens to be a player who was on the winning side in the Fall Classic.

Former Phillies slugger Pat Burrell agreed today to a two-year contract with Tampa Bay that will pay him $16 million, a deal that is now official after he completed a physical in St. Petersburg.

Burrell knows all about his new hometown, having made Clearwater his offseason home for the last four or five years. But he said on a conference call this afternoon that the Rays' potential to return to the World Series was the biggest draw.

"I understand the team, I understand what these guys have gone through," he said. "When I came up with Philadelphia, it was a similar situation, really. We were kind of at the bottom of the barrel and worked our way up to the top. I think that's kind of where these guys are headed. Obviously they got to the World Series last year, and from what I understand, the players got a taste of that and are even hungrier this year to get back."

Burrell, 32, has spent his entire career with the Phillies. The first overall pick in the 1998 draft out of the University of Miami, the Arkansas native broke into the big leagues two years later and has been a fixture in left field in Philadelphia since the following year.

Burrell figures to be used primarily as a designated hitter with Tampa Bay, and his right-handed pop will complement Evan Longoria's power bat in a lineup that struggled against left-handed pitching last year. He has a .950 career OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage) against lefties (compared to .819 vs. righties) and draws walks from southpaws at a much higher rate.

His ability to fill that need made him more attractive to Tampa Bay than the other contenders to fill their DH slot, the rest of whom – Jason Giambi, Garret Anderson, Ken Griffey Jr., etc. – bat from the left side.

Burrell has 251 homers in nine major-league seasons, with a high of 37 in 2002. In typical slugger fashion, he has tallied high walk and strikeout totals throughout his career. He has fanned at least 120 times each of the last nine years but has also drawn more than 100 walks the past two seasons.

Though Burrell was hardly at his best against the Rays in the World Series, going 1-for-14, his lone hit led to the championship-clinching run in the rain-delayed Game 5.

After Rocco Baldelli's homer in the top of the seventh tied the game at 3-3, Burrell led off the bottom of the inning with a double off J.P. Howell. Pinch-runner Eric Bruntlett came on to replace him and scored what proved to be the winning run two batters later on a Pedro Feliz single off Chad Bradford.

Burrell Bio

Age: 32

Height: 6-4. Weight: 235

Bats: Right. Throws: Right

2008 Season: .250 batting average, 33 HRs, 86 RBI

Notes: Attended the University of Miami. … Despite a relative low career batting average (.257), he has career on-base percentage of .367. … Became just the second player in Phillies history with eight straight 20-HR seasons, joining Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt (14 straight, 1974-87). ...

Potential 2009 Rays batting order

1. Akinori Iwamura, 2B
2. Carl Crawford, LF
3. B.J. Upton, CF
4. Carlos Pena, 1B
5. Evan Longoria, 3B
6. Pat Burrell, DH
7. Dioner Navarro, C
8. Gabe Gross/Fernando Perez, RF
9. Jason Bartlett, SS

Reporter Marc Lancaster can be reached at (813) 259-7227.

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