St. Petersburg, FL (My Sportsbook) - Just five days after becoming the most expensive roster cut in baseball history, Damion Easley was signed by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Wednesday. The Detroit Tigers released the 33-year-old infielder on March 28 with $14.3 million remaining on his five-year deal. At that time, Detroit broke a week- old record for highest-salary release, originally set by the Devil Rays when they released Greg Vaughn on March 22. In an ironic twist, the Devil Rays have now claimed the player that enabled Detroit to top Tampa Bay's original record when it cut Vaughn. Vaughn was Tampa Bay's highest-paid player and was slated to be paid $9.25 million for the final year of his four-year contract that ran out after the 2003 season. In a related move, the Devil Rays optioned second baseman Brent Abernathy to Triple-A Durham. |
