Brewers’ owner Mark Attanasio promises that Milwaukee will do its best to sign its core of young talent to long-term deals. At the same time, he washes his hands of any blame if Prince Fielder is feeling slighted by the $255,000 raise he got in a contract renewal earlier this year.
Fielder, second baseman Rickie Weeks, left fielder Ryan Braun, and outfielder Corey Hart form the core of Milwaukee’s young team that’s expected to contend in the NL Central for years. "[W]e’re interested in signing all of our younger players to longer-term deals," Attanasio told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel yesterday.
Attanasio blames "the system," which gives pre-arb players no leverage, for Fielder’s relatively modest $670,000 salary this year. The hefty Brewers first baseman became the youngest player in MLB history to clout 50 home runs in a season in 2007.
