洋基簽下Rafael Soriano

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在 Rafael Soriano 不斷的勾引下
洋基用3年3500萬簽下Rafael Soriano

It appears that Mariano Rivera has a new setup man and the Yankees have a future successor to the long-occupied closer role in the Bronx.

The Yankees agreed to terms on Thursday with reliever Rafael Soriano -- pending a physical tentatively scheduled for Tuesday -- on a three-year contract worth approximately $35 million, according to a source. The Yankees have not confirmed the report.

Soriano will earn $10 million in the first year of his pact, with an additional $1.5 million if he opts out of the deal, $11 million in the second year, with an opt-out option of $1.5 million, and $14 million in 2013.

Soriano was widely considered the best available talent remaining on the Hot Stove market.

The Yankees will lose their first-round pick in the 2011 First-Year Player Draft to the Tampa Bay Rays because of Soriano's Type A free-agent status. Last week, general manager Brian Cashman said he wasn't willing to give up a first-round pick to sign Soriano.

It seems likely that the Yankees will gauge Soriano's performance in New York as the legendary career of Rivera, 41, winds down, with hopes of promoting Soriano to the closer's role when Rivera retires. Soriano figures to enter the Yankees' 2011 mix as the eighth-inning man while Rivera, with 559 career saves, goes after the recently retired Trevor Hoffman's all-time record of 601.

Meanwhile, the Yankees are getting a very talented closer-in-waiting. Soriano, 31, led the American League in saves with 45 last year while pitching for the Rays and posted a 1.73 ERA, an .802 WHIP and 57 strikeouts in 62 1/3 innings.

Soriano became a full-time closer in 2009 while pitching for the Atlanta Braves. He came up in the Seattle Mariners system and broke into the Majors in 2002 as a starter before locking into a middle-relief and setup role. He has a career 2.73 ERA, 1.000 WHIP and 422 strikeouts in 395 innings.

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