CINCINNATI - Cincinnati Reds President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Walt Jocketty Monday announced that the club and RHP Jared Burton have agreed to terms on a 1-year contract through the 2010 season, avoiding salary arbitration.
"Jared has done a great job in our bullpen the last few seasons, and we're counting on him again in 2010," Jocketty said. "We're glad to have signed Burton and Nick Masset before going to arbitration. Neither side wanted to go to a hearing."
The team and Burton were scheduled to submit salary arbitration figures on Tuesday.
Burton, 28, last season for the Reds posted a 4.40 ERA in 53 relief appearances surrounding a stint on the disabled list in July and August with a fatigued right shoulder. After he came off the DL on August 10 Burton recorded a 2.35 ERA in 22 appearances, including a 1.20 ERA in his last 15 games of the year.
Selected from the Oakland Athletics in the December 2006 Rule 5 Draft, in his 3 seasons with the Reds Burton is 10-3 with a 3.47 ERA in 154 appearances, all in relief.
Masset, also a righthanded reliever, was the only other Reds player eligible for arbitration. On Saturday he signed a 2-year contract through the 2011 season.
The club and players settled the last 6 arbitration cases, including Masset and Burton this off-season, RHP David Weathers and 3B Edwin Encarnacion last year and RHP Matt Belisle and RHP Brandon Phillips in 2008.
The Reds won 5 of the last 6 arbitration cases that were decided by panel, beating RHP Chris Reitsma in 2004, LHP Bruce Chen in 2003, RHP Danny Graves and RHP Osvaldo Fernandez in 2001 and RHP John Hudek in 1999 while losing to 1B Sean Casey in 2001.
