Fullmer’s Back for a Lot Less Money

Baseball’s new economic order hit Brad Fullmer hard. The Angels’ designated hitter signed a $1-million contract Monday, accepting a massive pay cut in order to keep his job.

The market was so flooded with free-agent hitters that the Angels could offer $1 million for a left-handed designated hitter and see who accepted. Robert Fick, who signed Monday with Atlanta, said the Angels made that $1-million offer to him, to Fullmer and to David Justice.

Fullmer, 27, made $3.5 million last season, when he hit .289 with 19 home runs. He is a career .282 hitter. Yet, while he attracted interest from other clubs, he did not have another firm offer in hand, according to Joel Wolfe, one of Fullmer’s representatives.

“We felt it was time to make a move,” Wolfe said. “He really did want to come back to the Angels. He understands what’s going on with baseball economics. He wasn’t happy with it, but he accepted it.”

The Angels refused to risk an arbitration hearing in which Fullmer could have been awarded as much as $5 million, so they let him become a free agent last month. General Manager Bill Stoneman saw little risk in the move, given the large pool of potential replacements.

“I don’t know how great a risk it was,” Stoneman said.

Fick, an All-Star outfielder for the Detroit Tigers last season, wanted to play for the Angels. He signed with Atlanta for $1 million, although the Braves provided $350,000 in incentive bonuses to Fick and the Angels provided none to Fullmer.

More important, Fick said, was that the Braves offered him a job as the starting first baseman while the Angels emphasized that Scott Spiezio would start at first base and Tim Salmon would start in right field.

Salmon, 34, started 21 games at designated hitter last season, and Manager Mike Scioscia said Salmon would DH “at least as much as he did last year.” When Salmon replaces Fullmer at DH, the Angels could use reserve Eric Owens or even Spiezio in the outfield, with Shawn Wooten replacing Spiezio at first base.

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The Angels also have signed outfielder Julio Ramirez, who hit .281 in 29 games last season, to a minor league contract. He will compete with minor leaguers Jeff DaVanon, Nathan Haynes, Robb Quinlan and Barry Wesson for a bench spot.

But that spot will vanish if the Angels decide to open the season with 12 pitchers, which will depend in part on whether starter Aaron Sele is fully recovered from shoulder surgery. Mickey Callaway and Matt Wise are out of options, so the Angels must include them on the major league roster or risk losing them on waivers.

If Sele cannot recover by opening day, Scioscia said that Callaway, Wise, rookie Chris Bootcheck and relievers Scott Schoeneweis and Scot Shields would be considered for the starting rotation.