Young Gets $28.5 Million

First baseman Dmitri Young, who has batted .300 or better in four consecutive seasons, agreed Thursday to a $28.5-million, four-year contract with the Detroit Tigers.

The deal contains a club option for 2006 that could become guaranteed if he plays regularly, and which would make the contract worth $37 million over five years.

“It’s a major signing for us, just a fantastic deal for us,” Tiger General Manager Randy Smith said. “When we acquired Dmitri, we were thrilled to get a guy in the prime of his career who hit .300 the last four years. “

Young, 28, came to the Tigers in December from the Cincinnati Reds in a trade for outfielder Juan Encarnacion and reliever Luis Pineda. The Reds shed Young as part of a cost-cutting effort.

Young batted .302 with 21 home runs and 69 runs batted in last year.

Young had asked for a raise from $3.5 million to $6.15 million in arbitration. He had been offered $5 million.

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Former major league outfielder and designated hitter Chili Davis agreed to serve as a minor league hitting instructor in spring training for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Davis played 19 seasons in the majors for five teams and was a teammate of Diamondback Manager Bob Brenly in the minors and with the San Francisco Giants.

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Pedro Martinez arrived at the Boston Red Sox clubhouse at Fort Myers, Fla., more muscular and, for a change, early for spring training.

Martinez threw smoothly and showed no sign of the worst injury of his brilliant career, which limited him to career lows of 18 games and seven victories last season, none in the last four months.

An off-season program in his native Dominican Republic, in which he lifted weights regularly for the first time, helped Martinez, who is 5 feet 11, report at about 190 pounds, 12 pounds heavier than last season.

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St. Paul’s plan for a new ballpark for the Minnesota Twins sailed through its first legislative committee during a hearing.... The Texas Rangers agreed to one-year contracts with pitchers Colby Lewis and Andy Pratt and outfielders Ryan Ludwick and Kevin Mench.

The New York Yankees signed Ruben Rivera to a $1-million, one-year contract. Rivera, 29, batted .255 with 10 homers and 34 RBIs for Cincinnati last season.