Remember when every GM, owner and fan was flabbergasted by the size of the contract Toronto Blue Jays? General Manger J.P. Riccardi handed out to A.J. Burnett last offseason? Boy, what a difference a year makes. Burnett was about to turn 29, entering his prime, and had a no-hitter on his resume. He also had a career ERA of just over 3.70, averaged 8.54 strikeouts per nine innings the past four seasons and owns one of the deadliest curveballs in the game. 5-years, $55 million. One year later, that same price-tag was given to someone with a career ERA of 4.65. Someone whose opponents have batted .260 against (compared to Burnett's current career .235 average against), and someone who has only struck out 6.35 batters per nine innings. He also will be turning 29 this year. Cost of inflation? Hardly. This contract, "awarded" to Gil Meche by the Kansas City Royals, is just one of the many evidences of the stark rise of salaries in Major League Baseball, and it appears to be continuing in a rapid domino effect. Last year, the Blue Jays were highly criticized for their big spending on pitchers Burnett and B.J. Ryan, whose 5-year $45 million contract was the largest ever for a reliever. It appeared that G.M. Riccardi over-reacted when given a large bump in the team?s payroll and the effects of those signings are being felt to this day. This year's offseason started out with some reasonable contracts for starting pitchers. Mike Mussina re-signed with the Yankees for $11.5 million per season. Considering he could still be a staff ace and has a potential Hall of Fame resume, it isn't a bad deal. The Mets re-signed Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez for $6 million a season - not a bad price. Yes he is a back-end of the rotation guy for most teams, but he has a wealth of playoff experience and has the ability to shut hitters down. Another middle-to-back of the rotation guy, Woody Williams, signed for just over $6 million per season with the Astros. Yes, the price for pitchers has increased, but the contracts weren't other-worldly. Then on the 30th of November, the Phillies signed Adam Eaton to a 3-year deal worth around $8 million per season and listed him as their #4 starter. So the Blue Jays paid $11 million for a #2 starter, but now a #4 starter is getting just $3 million less!? However, the bar was raised when the Los Angeles Dodgers signed ace Jason Schmidt for over $15 million per season. Then the wheels fell off and all of the general managers panicked. Vincente Padilla, a #2 or #3 starter, signs a 3-year deal with the Rangers worth around $11 million per season, with an option for a fourth at $12 million. Four days later is when Meche signed his deal with the Royals. A day later, 35-year old Miguel Batista gets a 3-year $25 million contract with the Mariners. But when the Cubs signed Ted Lilly, a #3 or #4 starter to a $10 million per year deal, all bets were off. Ted Lilly is making the same as Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux; who would you rather have? Well apparently the Giants would rather have Barry Zito. Entering his prime with a Cy Young on his resume, Zito was awarded with the largest contract ever to a pitcher: 7-years, $126 million. Not bad for a guy who plays every 5 or 6 days. That same contract was signed by Vernon Wells, extending his time in Toronto rather than waiting for free agency after next season. But that wasn't a bar Riccardi set. That bar was set by the Mets when they signed a centerfielder of the same talents before the 2005 season. Carlos Beltran received a 7-year, $119 million contract that opened the eyes of many in the baseball community. When Wells' agent indicated his client wanted 'Beltran type money,' the Jays balked. However, they weren't counting on Cubs G.M. Jim Hendry to make their decision more difficult for them. Hendry went on a spending spree that started by retaining third basemen Aramis Ramirez. The 28-year old slugger was the first big name free agent to sign when he inked a 5-year $75 million contract to remain in Chicago. But that $15 million per season was nothing compared to the deal Hendry signed Alfonso Soriano to: an 8-year $136 million ($17 million per season) contract for a 31 year old ex-infielder with shaky defense. You could hear Riccardi's head hit the table from British Columbia to Mexico. If he wanted to keep his All-Star and Gold Glover, he would have to pay handsomely. He also paid handsomely for Frank Thomas, a 39-year old slugger with only one healthy season in the past three. Still, he will be making $9 million when he turns 41, and probably doesn't even own a glove. There are a few other outfielders who got paid big this winter. Carlos Lee, 30, probably personally phoned Jim Hendry to thank him after receiving his 6-year $100 million contract from the Astros. Leadoff hitter Dave Roberts, 34, received his biggest payday ever, 3-years and $18 million. But that was greatly overshadowed by a couple of other centerfielders. Gary Matthews, Jr., 32, had his only real good season in a contract year and was rewarded by the Angels with a 5-year $50 million contract. Not shabby for a leadoff man who is a career .263 hitter. The other was centerfielder Juan Pierre signing a 5-year $44 million contract with the Dodgers. Many aren't sure about this one, as the Dodgers had a few nice up and coming outfielders from their farm system who probably could have stepped in and started this season. The Dodgers also have a leadoff man in Rafael Furcal, so Pierre may wind up hitting 8th, and has never been more than an average outfielder. So with these gaudy figures in mind, where does that lead us to for next season? Baseball's popularity is clearly back on the upswing as the fan base is starting to come back after the mid-90's strike. This means owners are seeing more money come in, thus are not as timid in spending it. So whether the first domino was Alex Rodriguez, Carlos Beltran or A.J. Burnett, I would say they are not done falling yet. Comments, suggestions or overall feedback is welcomed at [email protected]