Tigers, Joba Chamberlain agree to one-year deal
The Detroit Tigers agreed to terms on a one-year contract with reliever Joba Chamberlain, the team announced Tuesday.
Financial terms were not disclosed, but MLB.com reports that Chamberlain’s base salary will be $1 million, with the opportunity to earn another $500,000. He made $2.5 million last season.
In his first season in Detroit in 2014, Chamberlain appeared in 69 games, going 2-5 with a 3.57 ERA and two saves, while ranking second in the American League with 29 holds. He had a 4.97 ERA after the All-Star break and gave up four earned runs in his two postseason appearances.
Chamberlain, 29, spent his first seven seasons with the New York Yankees, mostly as a set-up man.
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Chamberlain said the new deal isn’t about money and loves "being part of Detroit and the history."
"I had a lot of other teams interested," Chamberlain said to MLB.com. "But at the end of the day, we did what was best for my family and myself. We always talked. We obviously knew the situation dollars-wise, but in the end, it just worked perfectly."
He has a combined record of 25-19 with a 3.81 ERA in his MLB career.
"We're very happy to have Joba on board," Tigers president and general manager Dave Dombrowski said. "We stayed in contact with him throughout the winter. We liked the job that Joba did for us last year.
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