The Future is very bright: Bullpen Addition

H'ville, Tn - Heading into this off-season the Hendersonville Hitmen were on the outside looking in during Free Agency signing.  With the removal of the cap it freed up millions of dollars for several teams to go out and make big FA splashes.  Hendersonville was not one of them.

"Arby kicked our asses this year," commented Hays.  "Our payroll went from $73M to $130M with arbitration this season.  That's rough!"

Being handcuffed by the teams finances forced Hays to be very creative this off-season but didn't stop them from making some moves. Hays was able to move nearly $20M in salary and brought in several very young highly talented players such as CF Luis Padilla (21), DH Manny Copriviza (22), MR Ghidewon Hassan (23), SP Mal Windham (24) and SP Walter Bamber (25).

Once the payroll was back down to a manageable number Hays was able to move forward with locking up some of the teams superstars.  The first step was locking up the dominating trio of arms that anchor the Bullpen. 

Tommy "Flash" Smith

Name: Tommy "Flash" Smith
Age: 26
Throws: R
Local Pop: Extremely Popular
National Pop: Extremely Popular
2012 Salary: $5.3M
Extension: $9.8M over 3-yrs ($3.0-$3.5M/yr)
Highlights: 8-3, 12 Svs, 1.86 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 11.7 K/9, 132 Ks in 101.2 innings last year

Alfredo Gonzalez

Name: Alfredo "Last Resort" Gonzalez
Age: 25
Throws: R
Local Pop: Well Known
National Pop: Fair
2012 Salary: $6.0M
Extension: $10.7M over 3-yrs ($3.6M/yr)
Highlights: 5-3, 5 Svs, 2.45 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 9.4 K/9, 103 Ks in 99.0 innings last season

Ghidewon Hassan

Name: Ghidewon Hassan
Age: 23
Throws: R
Local Pop: Well Known
National Pop: Well Known
2012 Salary: $5.1M
Extension: $5.3M over 3-yrs ($1.8M/yr)
Highlights: 4-5, 1 Sv, 2.96 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 8.9 K/9, 69 Ks in 70.0 innings,  last season



"Locking up these 3 guys was the utmost importance to us," commented Hays during a spring training interview.  "These 3 arms will be the most feared bullpen in the league for years to come and all of these guys have yet to hit their prime."

The signing of Smith, Gonzalez and Hassan not only insures that the Hitmen will have a dominating bullpen for the next 3 years, but it also saved the club a TON of cash.  Since all 3 guys were in Arby it is safe to assume their salaries would go up, but with the re-signings the club saved at least $8M/year over the next 3 years.

"For these guys to come to us and say 'we are willing to take below market value contracts to stay in Hendersonville' is a testament of their character and this organization's commitment to winning.  You will be hard pressed to find that anywhere else around the league," added Hays.