azdad1978
Championship!!!!
By Jerry Brown, Tribune
What a difference a year makes for Shawn Estes.
Last January, after going 8-11 with the Chicago Cubs, Estes was a free agent and sat by his phone in Paradise Valley. The silence was deafening.
He finally took a "no promises’’ offer from the Colorado Rockies — after the Diamondbacks passed over him in favor of Shane Reynolds. He took a pay cut from $3 million to $600,000 to play in a pitcher’s graveyard, Coors Field.
But Estes didn’t give up.
Thanks to extra offseason conditioning to strengthen both his body and mind, Estes went 8-2 in Denver and 15-8 overall in 34 starts for a bad Rockies team, putting himself in much higher demand for this year’s free agent derby.
And for the right to stay home with his wife and two young sons — 16-month-old Jackson and 3-month-old Cody, Estes passed on a twoyear, $7 million deal in Washington for a one-year, $2.5 million contract with Arizona.
"This winter was a lot less stressful. I could wait for things to come to me,’’ said Estes, who finished second to Randy Johnson (16) for most wins by a lefty in the National League last year.
"But in the end my family definitely comes first in my life and career is second, so it was an easy choice.
"I was single for a long time in the big leagues. And playing with guys that had children, I saw how hard it was for them to be away.’’
The chance to stay in the National League West, where Estes spent his first six seasons with the San Francisco Giants (winning 19 games as an All-Star in 1997), also appealed to him. Last year, Estes was 8-1 in 16 starts inside the division with a 3.73 ERA.
"This is the division where I have had my most success and where I feel most comfortable with all the big left-handed hitters,’’ he said. "And the team they are building here reminds me a lot of the ’97 Giants . . . pretty much every position was filled with new guys except for left field (then it was Barry Bonds, now it’s Luis Gonzalez).’’
The additions of infielders Troy Glaus, Royce Clayton (Estes’ shortstop in Colorado last year) and Craig Counsell also is comforting for a ground-ball pitcher who led the league in inducing double plays last year.
Last year’s Diamondbacks were the worst defensive team in the league.
"Defense up the middle is crucial for me, and I don’t have any concerns with what I see,’’ Estes said. "I didn’t know how good Royce was until I played with him last year. He’s one of the best, day in and day out.’’
But even with the additions of Glaus and Shawn Green and pitchers like Russ Ortiz and Javier Vazquez, Estes is taking a wait-and-see attitude about Arizona’s chances to go from 111 losses to a playoff contender.
"This team looks very good on paper, but we had a real good team in New York with the Mets (in 2002) and we finished about last,’’ he said.
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=34676
What a difference a year makes for Shawn Estes.
Last January, after going 8-11 with the Chicago Cubs, Estes was a free agent and sat by his phone in Paradise Valley. The silence was deafening.
He finally took a "no promises’’ offer from the Colorado Rockies — after the Diamondbacks passed over him in favor of Shane Reynolds. He took a pay cut from $3 million to $600,000 to play in a pitcher’s graveyard, Coors Field.
But Estes didn’t give up.
Thanks to extra offseason conditioning to strengthen both his body and mind, Estes went 8-2 in Denver and 15-8 overall in 34 starts for a bad Rockies team, putting himself in much higher demand for this year’s free agent derby.
And for the right to stay home with his wife and two young sons — 16-month-old Jackson and 3-month-old Cody, Estes passed on a twoyear, $7 million deal in Washington for a one-year, $2.5 million contract with Arizona.
"This winter was a lot less stressful. I could wait for things to come to me,’’ said Estes, who finished second to Randy Johnson (16) for most wins by a lefty in the National League last year.
"But in the end my family definitely comes first in my life and career is second, so it was an easy choice.
"I was single for a long time in the big leagues. And playing with guys that had children, I saw how hard it was for them to be away.’’
The chance to stay in the National League West, where Estes spent his first six seasons with the San Francisco Giants (winning 19 games as an All-Star in 1997), also appealed to him. Last year, Estes was 8-1 in 16 starts inside the division with a 3.73 ERA.
"This is the division where I have had my most success and where I feel most comfortable with all the big left-handed hitters,’’ he said. "And the team they are building here reminds me a lot of the ’97 Giants . . . pretty much every position was filled with new guys except for left field (then it was Barry Bonds, now it’s Luis Gonzalez).’’
The additions of infielders Troy Glaus, Royce Clayton (Estes’ shortstop in Colorado last year) and Craig Counsell also is comforting for a ground-ball pitcher who led the league in inducing double plays last year.
Last year’s Diamondbacks were the worst defensive team in the league.
"Defense up the middle is crucial for me, and I don’t have any concerns with what I see,’’ Estes said. "I didn’t know how good Royce was until I played with him last year. He’s one of the best, day in and day out.’’
But even with the additions of Glaus and Shawn Green and pitchers like Russ Ortiz and Javier Vazquez, Estes is taking a wait-and-see attitude about Arizona’s chances to go from 111 losses to a playoff contender.
"This team looks very good on paper, but we had a real good team in New York with the Mets (in 2002) and we finished about last,’’ he said.
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=34676
