Melancon guaranteed $3M by Padres, can earn $11M for 2 years

Updated Feb. 19, 2021 10:48 p.m. ET

Associated Press

PEORIA, Ariz. (AP) — Reliever Mark Melancon is guaranteed $3 million as part of his one-year contract with the San Diego Padres and could earn $11 million over two seasons if he closes regularly.

Melancon has a $2 million salary this year as part of the agreement announced Thursday, and the deal includes a $5 million option with a $1 million buyout if either side declines.

Melancon can earn $2 million annually in performance bonuses for games finished: $250,000 each for 20, 25, 30 and 35, and $500,000 each for 40 and 45.

A three-time NL All-Star with Pittsburgh, Melancon was 2-1 with a 2.78 ERA and 11 saves in 23 games during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. The 35-year-old right-hander earned $5,185,185 in prorated pay from a $14 million salary in the final season of a $62 million, four-year contract he signed with San Francisco ahead of the 2017 season.

Melancon is 30-27 with a 2.85 ERA and 205 saves in 12 seasons with the New York Yankees (2009-10), Houston (2010-11), Boston (2012), Pittsburgh (2013-16), Washington (2016), San Francisco (2017-19) and Atlanta (2019-20). He has struck out 549 in 606 innings.

San Diego also announced a deal Thursday with right-handed reliever Keone Kela, who gets a $1.2 million salary while in the major leagues and $200,000 while in the minors. His deal includes an $800,000 conditional option for 2022 that the team could exercise if Kela hurts his pitching arm, needs Tommy John surgery and spends more than 90 days in a row on the injured list during the 2021 regular season.

Kela can earn $800,000 in performance bonuses for games pitched: $100,000 for 25 and each addition five through 60.

He also can earn $1.5 million in performance bonuses for games finished: $250,000 each for 20, 25, 30 and 35, and $500,000 for 40.

Kela allowed one run over two innings for Pittsburgh last year in a season cut short by a forearm injury. He converted 24 of 25 save chances for Texas in 2018.

Kela is 21-11 with 28 saves and a 3.24 ERA and 266 strikeouts in 216 2/3 innings for Texas (2015-18) and Pittsburgh (2018-20).

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