Contract question regarding Kazmir

[hawgvike]

Scott Kazmir - S - TB


Devil Rays agreed to terms with LHP Scott Kazmir, RHP Doug Waechter and RHP Chris Seddon on one-year contracts.
Kazmir is promised a rotation spot barring a disaster this spring. Waechter will have to compete for a job. Seddon is expected to spend most of the season in the minors. Jan. 26 - 5:47 pm et

i may be wrong, but is he ONLY on that one-year contract? am i correct in thinking that he could be a free agent at years end or am i horribly missing something?

[Amazinz]

No he'll be bound by arbitration for his first 5 years.

[red]

strange thing, though; unless I'm misunderstanding something. If he wasn't arbitration eligible: why did they sign him to a one year contract? Was he threatening to hold out or something?
Maybe there's something I'm not understanding.
Does anyone know the terms of the contract?

[KPucks]

I'm pretty sure that if a player is in the majors he is eligible for arbitration his first 5 years in the big leagues. Since Kazmir was in the majors last year, he would have gone to arbitration but he and the Rays settled before the hearing. He won't be a free agent for some time.

[Amazinz]

I do not know the terms of the contract but it's not that strange for players like Kazmir to sign a one-year deal. Often you'll see a player sign several one-year deals while they are bound by arbitration. In this case if TB and Kazmir were seeing eye-to-eye on a contract value then there's no need to go to arbitration.