Dejan Kovacevic reports that Octavio Dotel will make $3.25 M in 2010, with a $4.5 M option in 2011. That option includes a $250 K buyout. The deal includes performance bonuses based on games finished, although those bonuses are unknown. The deal also comes with a clause that makes the option a mutual option, should Dotel get traded. While this doesn’t prevent the Pirates from potentially trading Dotel, it does lower his value essentially to a two month rental, as Dotel could void the option with his new team and enter free agency again next off-season if traded.
Of course there’s no guarantee Dotel will be traded. Dotel was a Type A free agent this off-season, although he wasn’t offered arbitration, which means the Pirates won’t lose any draft picks for signing him. However, there’s a good chance that he retains his Type A status, which means the Pirates could get two compensation picks for him after the season. To do so they would need to buyout his option for $250 K, then offer him arbitration. Dotel would need to decline arbitration, at which point the Pirates would be guaranteed a compensation pick between the first and second rounds of the 2011 draft, plus a second compensation pick from the team that signs Dotel for the 2011 season.
If Dotel were to accept the offer of arbitration from the Pirates, he would be eligible for a raise over his total compensation in 2010 (the $3.25 M, plus any bonuses he receives). The Pirates would still be paying the $250 K buyout in that scenario, on top of Dotel’s new 2011 salary.
The 2010 40-man roster/payroll page has been updated. It looks like the opening day payroll will remain in the $36 M range. The Future Payroll Commitments page has also been updated. With Dotel’s $250 K buyout, the Pirates are now committed to just $12.35 M after the 2010 season, with $11.1 M of that in 2011.
