Hello, Halos
Vaughn knows huge contract brings high expectations
Posted: Wednesday December 02, 1998 10:20 PM
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Quite satisfied: Mo Vaughn (right, with GM Bill Bavasi) feels no pressure because he has a long-term deal AP |
ANAHEIM, California (AP) -- The contract is huge, so naturally the
expectations are great. Nevertheless, the Anaheim Angels realize
new addition Mo
Vaughn can only do so much by himself.
Vaughn is aware of that, too.
"He said it right, he's just one guy," manager Terry Collins said
following a news conference Wednesday to introduce Vaughn, who signed a
six-year, $80 million contract with the Angels a week earlier. "We just
want him to be himself, everything that's in that package.
"Our other players just got better -- he makes them better."
The belief is Vaughn will improve the team both on and off the field, a
responsibility the slugging first baseman is more than willing to take on.
However, he doesn't want to step on any toes.
"I try to push people to play well, believe in themselves," he admitted.
"They've got a good bunch of guys on this ballclub. It's their clubhouse,
they've been here longer than I have. We're all looking for the same thing.
"By midseason, I'll probably have something to say."
Vaughn smiled when asked about making such a major move, having played
for the Boston Red
Sox since beginning his big league career in 1991 and living in the
East all his life.
"I really don't know what to expect out here," he said. "If you win, it's
all fun, it doesn't matter whether you're playing on Mars."
Vaughn, who turns 31 later this month, became baseball's highest-paid
player upon signing with the Angels with an average annual salary of $13.33
million.
Terms call for him to receive a $13 million signing bonus -- $5 million
next year and $8 million in 2003 -- along with salaries of $5 million in
1999; $9 million in 2000; $11 million in 2001; $10 million in 2002; $15
million in 2003 and 2004, and a club option for $14 million with a $2
million buyout in 2005.
"I'm going to put it in the bank," Vaughn said with a smile when asked
what he was going to do with all that money.
Vaughn is the most prominent free agent signed by the Angels since Hall
of Famer Reggie Jackson joined them nearly 17 years ago.
Vaughn hit .337 with 40 homers and 115 RBIs last season. He has hit .300
or higher in each of the last five years while averaging nearly 37 homers
and over 112 RBIs.
"When we embarked on this offseason, we decided we wanted to be real
specific about the kind of players we wanted," general manager Bill Bavasi
said. "Only the best would do. We think we've done that, with the addition
of Mo."
Bavasi said the fact that Vaughn has star power was probably the third
reason the team signed him.
"First and foremost is his ability on the field, and second to that but
real close is his presence in the clubhouse and his presence on his
ballclub," Bavasi said.
Vaughn said the Angels did all the right things to attract him, pointing
specifically to a letter he received from them after the season.
"They saw some things in me that I really didn't see myself," he said. "I
appreciated that. You never know what people think about you on the other
side.
"This is a team I always looked at as one to fear in the American League.
I would never tell them that. The expectations should be higher [than
before], I'm looking forward to it. I'll just continue to be myself."
What about the pressure?
"I think the pressure was playing last year without a [future] contract,"
he said. "I kind of surprised myself considering the situation I was under
with my contract.
"I'm going to play relaxed [this year]. Of course, I want to stay where I
am [in terms of productivity]. If I can go up, that's good, too."
Vaughn said he holds no grudges against the Red Sox, although he
expressed the feeling he had been mistreated by them.
"I'm a little tired of controversy for reasons I don't understand," he
said. "[But] I have no negative thoughts about where I come from. We're
past it, on to something else.
"They gave me an opportunity to be where I am right here, right now."
Four players -- pitchers Chuck Finley,
Troy
Percival and Mike James and
catcher-outfielder Todd Greene --
attended the luncheon and news conference at Edison International Field,
and warmly greeted Vaughn upon his arrival -- which started more than an
hour late because of unforeseen travel delays.
"He's a wonderful addition to our club," Finley said. "Everybody around
the league respects Mo, the way he plays. He's coming to a good team here,
he can only improve it.
"He'll blend in with this team easy. You're an outcast if you don't play
hard."
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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