February 17 2011 Last updated at 05:56 PM ET
Jose Bautista and the Blue Jays finalized a five-year, $65 million contract extension Thursday.The reigning home run champion will make $8 million in 2011 and $14 million each year from 2012-15. The Jays have a $14 million option for 2016 that can be bought out for $1 million.
Bautista had been scheduled for an arbitration hearing Monday but that proceeding was put on hold as the two sides hammered out a multiyear deal. He had asked for $10.5 million for this season and the Jays had offered $7.6 million, so the team won the battle for this season but Bautista certainly is the long-term beneficiary.
He earned his big payday by hitting 54 homers, driving in 124 runs and posting a stellar .995 OPS in his second full season in Toronto. His previous career high in homers in the majors or minors was 24 in 2005 -- all but one of those coming for Double-A Altoona.
He had never hit more than 16 homers in six previous major league seasons that saw him bounce with limited success from Baltimore to Tampa Bay to Kansas City to Pittsburgh before finding his niche in Toronto.
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