Finley Expected to Join Indians for Three Years at $26 Million

The Cleveland Indians are on the verge of securing what they believe will be the missing link to that elusive World Series championship.

Former Angel pitcher Chuck Finley, a noted New York Yankee killer, has reached an agreement with the Indians on a three-year contract for roughly $26 million, a baseball source said Wednesday, and the Indians are expected to announce the signing of the free-agent left-hander today.

Finley had dinner Tuesday night with Indian General Manager John Hart, new Manager Charlie Manuel, outgoing team owner Dick Jacobs and Larry Dolan, who is buying the team. He remained in Cleveland on Wednesday.

One reason for the delay is that Finley has agreed to defer a portion of his salary without interest, and agent Tim Shannon and team officials were hammering out the final details of the contract Wednesday.

Finley is 37, and a three-year deal for a player his age would seem to be a considerable financial risk--Finley will turn 39 shortly after the second year of a contract that will pay him an average of almost $9 million a season.

But Finley, who spurned similar offers from the Seattle Mariners and Baltimore Orioles, never had a major arm or shoulder injury in his 14 seasons with the Angels, and he has a 16-9 record and 3.49 earned-run average against the Yankees, so the Indians, who haven’t had a left-handed starter since Greg Swindell in the early 1990s, believe he’s worth it.

They’ll plug Finley into the second spot in a rotation that is led by Bartolo Colon and includes Charles Nagy, Dave Burba and Jaret Wright.

The Angels, who appear to be in a downsizing mode amid speculation that the Walt Disney Co. is trying to sell the team, did not make a serious effort to re-sign Finley, the team’s ace, a strong clubhouse presence and a fan favorite.

Because of a stipulation forbidding the Angels from offering Finley salary arbitration, the Angels will not receive any compensation in the form of top draft picks from the Indians.

So when Finley and the Angels parted ways Dec. 7, the Angels had nothing to show for the pitcher who holds franchise records for wins (165), starts (379) and innings pitched (2,675), and ranks second behind Nolan Ryan in strikeouts (2,151).

Meanwhile, Angel General Manager Bill Stoneman and Oakland A’s General Manager Billy Beane continued discussions on a deal that would send center fielder Jim Edmonds to the A’s for three minor leaguers.

While no agreement was reached, and it was still unclear if the A’s could increase their 2000 budget to accommodate Edmonds’ $4.65-million salary, neither side indicated that the deal was in danger of collapsing.

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A decision on Adrian Beltre’s request to be declared a free agent, expected today or Friday, is not likely now until sometime next week, Commissioner Bud Selig said.

Selig, who works out of Milwaukee, said he will be in New York today on other business and will probably review the Beltre situation with Sandy Alderson, baseball’s executive vice president. However, Selig said, “I have yet to receive the results of Sandy’s investigation, and ultimately it’s my decision. We’re getting close, but I doubt it will be by the end of the week.”

The Dodger third baseman claims he was signed by the club in the Dominican Republic before he was 16, the minimum age allowed by baseball, and should be declared a free agent, with the Dodgers having the opportunity to re-sign him. Anything less is expected to result in a grievance filed by the Major League Players Assn. on Beltre’s behalf, seeking binding arbitration on the issue.