Mallards Announce Extensions for Key Players
MILBURN (11/1/1979) - The Milburn Mallards announced today the signing of contract extensions for two key players. Signing a one-year extension were All-Star Catcher Ron Schwartz. Schwartz will be earning $232,000 for for the 1980 season.
The team also announced that closer Lee Lewis has signed a two-year extension worth $550,000 per season. The right-hander will be 41 years old at the end of this extension.
Both of these offers were made prior to my arrival, so I did not have much to do with them. But glad we could particularly get the deal done with Schwartz. He is arbitration-eligible again after the '80 season, so I may try to avoid that and get him signed to a longer-term deal during the season, if not before.
The Lewis deal makes me a little uneasy. Again, the offer was made by my predecessor, but I didn't want to risk upsetting Lewis by pulling the offer or trying to re-work it. But $550,000 a year for a 39 year old who has not been with the same club for a good number of years is a bit of a risk. He will be 41 at the end of this deal, so this may be his last contract in baseball. Hopefully he can last it out.