Kerry Wood didn’t exactly hit the jackpot Friday, but his $690,000 salary for 1999 set a record for second-year players signing one-year deals.
Wood said he was “very pleased” with his contract and wasn’t disappointed that he didn’t get a four-year, $12 million contract from the Cubs like Colorado’s Todd Helton received this week.
“To me a multiyear wasn’t a plan from the get-go,” Wood said. “They were concerned about the arm from last season.”
General Manager Ed Lynch said the club talked about more years “but we thought right now there was more common ground on a one-year basis.”
Wood said it was “understandable” if the Cubs were too concerned over his health to go more than one year.
“It’s good money,” he said. “It’s a pretty good step up . . . and now we can play baseball.”
The previous record for a one-year deal signed by a second-year player was $550,000, which the Yankees’ Derek Jeter and the Dodgers’ Todd Hollandsworth both received in 1997 after their respective Rookie of the Year seasons in 1996. The record for average annual salary for a second-year player is $4.7 million, which Nomar Garciaparra received in a five-year, $23.5 million deal in 1998 after his Rookie of the Year season in Boston.
Lynch said the Cubs would revisit the possibility of a multiyear deal after the season.
“It’s always something we’ll entertain,” Lynch said. “Kerry is a very special player. There’s absolutely no doubt in my mind as to his ability and competitiveness. He’s an extraordinary talent.”
Wood said he’s not too concerned about financial matters, seemingly a rarity among young athletes now.
“He’s out there to win,” Lynch said.
