The Diamondbacks announced on Tuesday that they had avoided salary arbitration with right-handers Claudio Vargas and Brandon Lyon, catcher Johnny Estrada and infielders Orlando Hudson and Alex Cintron, signing each to a one-year contract.
Lyon, who began last year as the team's closer and saved 13 games before suffering an elbow injury that kept him on the shelf from May 13 to Aug. 12, signed a deal worth $830,000.
The D-Backs claimed Vargas off waivers from Washington in early June last year, and for an 11-game stretch from June 21 to Aug. 18, he was the club's best pitcher as he went 7-2 with a 2.82 ERA.
Overall, Vargas was 9-6 with a 4.81 ERA in 21 games (19 starts) for Arizona.
On Dec. 7, the Diamondbacks acquired Estrada, who hit .261 with the Braves last season, in a trade that sent relievers Oscar Villarreal and Lance Cormier to Atlanta.
Hudson, who was acquired from the Blue Jays in the Troy Glaus trade, will receive $2.3 million this year. The Gold Glove winner hit .271 for Toronto last season.
Cintron, who has been the subject of trade rumors, will make $1.6 million. Speculation has been that the switch-hitter could be dealt for a left-handed specialist to bolster the Arizona bullpen.
In his third full season, Cintron hit .273 in 122 games with the Diamondbacks last year.
In other Diamondbacks news, infielder Craig Counsell and outfielder Luis Gonzalez were named to Team USA's provisional roster for the World Baseball Classic.
Pitcher Brandon Webb was asked by manager Buck Martinez to be part of Team USA's pitching staff, but after much thought, the offer was declined. Webb, who recently signed a contract extension that could keep him in Arizona through 2010, cited the fact that his wife Alicia is expecting the couple's first child in March.
In addition, with the right-hander already named the club's Opening Day starter, he wanted to make sure he was in camp from the entire time.
The Arizona Diamondbacks agreed to one-year contracts with Gold Glove second baseman Orlando Hudson and shortstop Alex Cintron on Tuesday, bypassing salary arbitration.
Hudson, who got a $2.3 million deal, and Cintron, who agreed to a $1.6 million contract, were the last of five Arizona players who filed for arbitration to reach deals with the team.
Hudson was acquired from Toronto with pitcher Miguel Batista in a deal last month that sent infielders Troy Glaus and Sergio Santos to the Blue Jays.
Cintron hit .273 with eight home runs and 48 RBIs for the Diamondbacks last season.
Brandon Webb and the Diamondbacks agreed to a $19.5 million, four-year deal on Friday, locking up the sinkerball specialist through his arbitration years.
The 26-year-old right-hander set a career high with 14 wins last season, his third in the big leagues. He finished 14-12 with a 3.54 ERA and 172 strikeouts in 229 innings.
"Brandon has certainly earned this contract," Arizona general manager Josh Byrnes said. "His three years thus far have been tremendous. He's really one of the more unheralded elite pitchers in baseball."
The deal includes an $8.5 million club option for 2010 with a $500,000 buyout. The buyout would increase by $500,000 each time Webb finishes in the top five of the NL Cy Young voting during the first four years of the contract.
Webb, who earned $715,000 last season, gets $2.5 million this year, $4.5 million in 2007, $5.5 million in 2008 and $6.5 million in 2009. Under his old contract, Webb would have made $2.5 million this year, and the Diamondbacks had an option for 2007.
In line to be Arizona's opening day starter next season, Webb has a 31-37 career record with a solid 3.35 ERA. He welcomed the chance to be the No. 1 guy on manager Bob Melvin's staff.
"I've worked with the pitching staff and the coaching staff and really honed in on what kind of pitcher I am," Webb said. "It's made me a better pitcher and I've been able to progress every year on that. Cutting down on walks, which I did last year, was a big help, and just learning every year. I just feel I can progress every year and get better."
Webb was an eighth-round selection in the 2000 draft out of the University of Kentucky and quickly advanced through the minors. As a rookie in 2003, he went 10-9 with a 2.84 ERA. In 2003, when the Diamondbacks lost 111 games, Webb was 7-16 with a 3.59 ERA and led the National League in walks.
Webb relies on groundball outs, and with an awful defense that season, he admittedly worked too hard to throw strikes. Last year, with a vastly improved defense, he lowered his walks to 59. He expects the defense to be even better with the addition of Gold Glove second baseman Orlando Hudson.
"This is the type of contract a club doesn't have to do," Byrnes said. "We had Brandon under control through arbitration for four more years, but it is something we wanted to do."
Byrnes, hired last October, said it's important to get long-term deals in place for a team's core players to give them security and the club some cost certainty.
"It really helps accelerate the decision-making process and the building process," Byrnes said.
Melvin said there is no doubt that Webb will be the staff's No. 1 starter and, as long as he's healthy, will take the mound in the season opener April 3 at Colorado.
"We're proud of what he's done and we're proud of where he's going," Melvin said. "To lock up a guy like this, not only a great pitcher and an outstanding individual, we're elated."
Webb said that while he welcomes the No. 1 role, he won't dwell on it.
"I recognize it, but thinking about it just adds pressure to me that I don't need," he said. "But I think I'm up to the challenge."
Notes: The Diamondbacks and reliever Luis Vizcaino also agreed to a $1,775,000, one-year deal, avoiding arbitration. The 31-year-old right-hander was acquired in the trade that sent starter Javier Vazquez to the Chicago White Sox. Vizcaino was 6-5 with a 3.73 ERA in 70 innings with the White Sox last year. He has pitched in parts of seven major league seasons, going 21-17 with a 4.36 ERA.
