Houston Astros sign short-stop Jed Lowrie – MLB News
The Houston Astros on Wednesday, February 8, succeeded in avoiding arbitration, signing a one-year contract with Jed Lowrie. The deal which is said to be worth $1.15 million will include bonuses and incentives for the Astros’ short-stop.
With the signing of this contract, the Houston Astros has now come forth as a team that avoided lengthy issues with all the arbitration-eligible players. While this smooth process speaks volumes about the Astros willingness to address the issues with urgency
and deliberation, it also shows that the club wanted the player in.
Lowrie himself had asked for $1.5 million when talks of arbitration began to circulate compared to the Astros’ offer of $900,000. However, as time went by, the Astros eventually decided to go for Lowrie’s demand.
"Jed is looking forward to attending the Astros Caravan [Thursday], especially having resolved his contractual status and avoiding an arbitration hearing," said agent Brodie Van Wagenen. "In the end, concessions were made by both parties that allowed a deal
to be reached amicably.”
Brodie Van Wagenen also referred to the fact that the player is currently in the best shape. The player had batted .252 in the past season with 309 at-bats, scoring a total of 40 runs with 36 RBIs that he had, maintaining a slugging percentage of .382 with
six home-runs.
"Jed is in the best shape of his life, ready for Spring Training and excited about suiting up for the Astros, and his relationship with the organization is off to a good start."
Lowrie has a career average of .252 in the 256 games he has played so far after he made his debut back in April 2008 with the Cleveland Indians.
His inclusion in the team was made possible after the Astros decided to exchange Mark Melancon when he was part of the Boston Red Sox.
With arbitration avoided, it will now be interesting to see how the short-stop rises to the expectations of the Houston Astros; a team that has yet to win any big title for years now. It will be exciting to see what type of impact Lowrie will have on the
Astros during the upcoming 2012 Major League Baseball regular season.
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