MajorMike
01-19-2007, 11:01 PM
Samardzija Commits To Cubs, Baseball
Star wideout gets $10 million to give up football
By Jim Callis
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January 19, 2007 Print this article
CHICAGO—Jeff Samardzija has been best known as an all-America wide receiver at Notre Dame. From now on, he'll be known as a Cubs pitcher.
Chicago announced Friday that it had signed Samardzija to a five-year major league contract worth a guaranteed $10 million. A devoted Cubs fan who grew up in northwest Indiana, he also received a full no-trade clause as part of the deal—unprecedented for a player of his experience. The contract also includes a $2.5 million bonus, several escalator clauses tied to awards voting and all-star berths and a pair of team options worth a total of $6.5 million for 2012-13.
But money was not the deciding factor, said Samardzija, whom various sources projected to go in the first or second round of the April NFL draft.
"I did have a love for football and obviously that's no longer going to take place," Samardzija said. "But the point I want to get across is that baseball is my first love. I've been playing it my whole life. It just doesn't get the attention football does.
"I understand what comes with this decision, and I'm comfortable with it."
As a show of his commitment to baseball, Samardzija insisted on a contract provision that will require him to return his entire bonus if he leaves the Cubs before his contract expires.
Samardzija holds all of Notre Dame's notable receiving records, and his football prowess gave him more leverage than most baseball draft picks. Baseball teams regarded him as a potential first-round talent last spring, but signability questions and uncertainty about which sport he'd eventually pick allowed the Cubs to select him in the fifth round last June.
The Cubs initially attempted to sign Samardzija to a series of one-year option contracts, which would have allowed him to make $7.25 million had the team picked up each of the options. But Major League Baseball refused to approve a minor league deal structured in that fashion, and Chicago didn't want to give him a major league contract.
Instead, the two sides agreed on a $250,000 bonus, with the guarantee of another $250,000 if he reported to spring training and an understanding that he'd get a deal in the neighborhood of their original agreement if he commited to baseball.
"It's not only a great day for the Cubs, but also for Major League Baseball," said Chicago general manager Jim Hendry, who announced Samardzija's signing at the team's annual Cubs Convention. "We've had a hard time keping athletes from other sports and keeping interest in baseball at a young age. This is great for the Cubs and for Major League Baseball to keep an athlete of Jeff's caliber."
The Cubs project the 21-year-old righthander as a future frontline starter. Though he remains raw on the mound because he has split his efforts between two sports, they believe he'll develop a consistent mid-90s fastball and an above-average slider now that he's playing baseball full-time. He made seven starts this summer between short-season Boise and low Class A Peoria, going 1-2, 2.70 with 17 strikeouts in 30 innings.
Samardzija said he's excited about seeing how good he can be in baseball and about playing for a team he has rooted for since he was a kid. He said he wrestled with his decision throughout the fall, when he earned football all-America honors for the second straight season and caught 78 passes for 1,017 yards and 12 touchdowns.
"It was tough from day one when I got back to South Bend this summer," he said. "I used the summer as a gauge of what to expect, and I had nothing bad to say about it. It made it so much tougher. There were so many days I sat in class writing down what's good here, what's good there, just killing myself about it."
Hendry said he expected that Samardzija would open 2007 at high Class A Daytona but set no timetable for him to reach the majors. When asked what a reasonable expectation would be, Samardzija—whose competitive makeup and character have wowed baseball and scouts universally—replied, "My reasonable expectation every time I pick up that ball is to win the game."
Though it was not the first professional contract he signed, it's comparable to the $10.5 million big league deal the Cubs gave No. 2 overall pick Mark Prior in 2001. That remains the largest guarantee ever given to a drafted player. Baseball America mistakenly reported that Samardzija had finalized a $7.25 million bonus during the summer, which would have been a record. The bonus mark reverts to Justin Upton, who got $6.1 million from the Diamondbacks as the No. 1 overall pick in 2005.
Samardzija's $10 million contract breaks down as follows:
Bonus: $2.5 million.
2007 salary: $300,000 ($380,000 if he reaches the majors).
2008 salary: $600,000 ($850,000 if he reaches the majors).
2009 salary: $1.3 million.
2010 salary: $2.5 million.
2011 salary: $2.8 million.
2012 club option: $3.0 million (he can opt out if arbitration-eligible).
2013 club option: $3.5 million (he can opt out if arbitration-eligible).
Star wideout gets $10 million to give up football
By Jim Callis
E-mail this article
January 19, 2007 Print this article
CHICAGO—Jeff Samardzija has been best known as an all-America wide receiver at Notre Dame. From now on, he'll be known as a Cubs pitcher.
Chicago announced Friday that it had signed Samardzija to a five-year major league contract worth a guaranteed $10 million. A devoted Cubs fan who grew up in northwest Indiana, he also received a full no-trade clause as part of the deal—unprecedented for a player of his experience. The contract also includes a $2.5 million bonus, several escalator clauses tied to awards voting and all-star berths and a pair of team options worth a total of $6.5 million for 2012-13.
But money was not the deciding factor, said Samardzija, whom various sources projected to go in the first or second round of the April NFL draft.
"I did have a love for football and obviously that's no longer going to take place," Samardzija said. "But the point I want to get across is that baseball is my first love. I've been playing it my whole life. It just doesn't get the attention football does.
"I understand what comes with this decision, and I'm comfortable with it."
As a show of his commitment to baseball, Samardzija insisted on a contract provision that will require him to return his entire bonus if he leaves the Cubs before his contract expires.
Samardzija holds all of Notre Dame's notable receiving records, and his football prowess gave him more leverage than most baseball draft picks. Baseball teams regarded him as a potential first-round talent last spring, but signability questions and uncertainty about which sport he'd eventually pick allowed the Cubs to select him in the fifth round last June.
The Cubs initially attempted to sign Samardzija to a series of one-year option contracts, which would have allowed him to make $7.25 million had the team picked up each of the options. But Major League Baseball refused to approve a minor league deal structured in that fashion, and Chicago didn't want to give him a major league contract.
Instead, the two sides agreed on a $250,000 bonus, with the guarantee of another $250,000 if he reported to spring training and an understanding that he'd get a deal in the neighborhood of their original agreement if he commited to baseball.
"It's not only a great day for the Cubs, but also for Major League Baseball," said Chicago general manager Jim Hendry, who announced Samardzija's signing at the team's annual Cubs Convention. "We've had a hard time keping athletes from other sports and keeping interest in baseball at a young age. This is great for the Cubs and for Major League Baseball to keep an athlete of Jeff's caliber."
The Cubs project the 21-year-old righthander as a future frontline starter. Though he remains raw on the mound because he has split his efforts between two sports, they believe he'll develop a consistent mid-90s fastball and an above-average slider now that he's playing baseball full-time. He made seven starts this summer between short-season Boise and low Class A Peoria, going 1-2, 2.70 with 17 strikeouts in 30 innings.
Samardzija said he's excited about seeing how good he can be in baseball and about playing for a team he has rooted for since he was a kid. He said he wrestled with his decision throughout the fall, when he earned football all-America honors for the second straight season and caught 78 passes for 1,017 yards and 12 touchdowns.
"It was tough from day one when I got back to South Bend this summer," he said. "I used the summer as a gauge of what to expect, and I had nothing bad to say about it. It made it so much tougher. There were so many days I sat in class writing down what's good here, what's good there, just killing myself about it."
Hendry said he expected that Samardzija would open 2007 at high Class A Daytona but set no timetable for him to reach the majors. When asked what a reasonable expectation would be, Samardzija—whose competitive makeup and character have wowed baseball and scouts universally—replied, "My reasonable expectation every time I pick up that ball is to win the game."
Though it was not the first professional contract he signed, it's comparable to the $10.5 million big league deal the Cubs gave No. 2 overall pick Mark Prior in 2001. That remains the largest guarantee ever given to a drafted player. Baseball America mistakenly reported that Samardzija had finalized a $7.25 million bonus during the summer, which would have been a record. The bonus mark reverts to Justin Upton, who got $6.1 million from the Diamondbacks as the No. 1 overall pick in 2005.
Samardzija's $10 million contract breaks down as follows:
Bonus: $2.5 million.
2007 salary: $300,000 ($380,000 if he reaches the majors).
2008 salary: $600,000 ($850,000 if he reaches the majors).
2009 salary: $1.3 million.
2010 salary: $2.5 million.
2011 salary: $2.8 million.
2012 club option: $3.0 million (he can opt out if arbitration-eligible).
2013 club option: $3.5 million (he can opt out if arbitration-eligible).