D-Backs give extensions to Hall, Byrnes

TUCSON - On Day One of full spring training, the Diamondbacks officially secured president Derrick Hall and general manager Josh Byrnes for the next 2,900 or so.

A union that was basically agreed upon in November was formalized Thursday, with the announcement that Hall and Byrnes received eight-year contract extensions that will take them through the 2015 season.

“It took Derrick, Josh and us about 30 minutes to resolve the substantive terms, and it has taken the lawyers about three months to hammer out the details. It’s been a slow boat to China,” D-Backs general partner Jeff Moorad said.

It would be hard to find a clearer indicator of management’s belief the team is heading in the right direction after a 2007 season in which the youthful D-Backs had the best record in the National League, 90-72, while winning the NL West for the first time since 2002.

“These guys (Byrnes and Hall) are 38. They are committed to us to the most important parts of their careers. Part of building any business is taking the long-term view,” partner Jeff Royer said.

Byrnes, hired in November 2005, has made significant, successful moves in his short tenure.

Byrnes overhauled the roster with trades and free-agent acquisitions, acquiring regulars Eric Byrnes, Orlando Hudson and Chris Young and starting pitchers Doug Davis, Dan Haren and Randy Johnson while operating under strict financial restraints.
The D-Backs won the NL West last season despite an on-field payroll that was about $53 million, among the lowest in the major leagues.

The on-field payroll this season will be about $69 million, still lower than the major league average.

Byrnes shrewdly signed staff ace Brandon Webb to a long-term contract before his 2006 Cy Young season, and was able to add affordable top-of-the-rotation starter Haren in an eight-player deal with Oakland two months ago.

“I don’t think there was a better-prepared individual in the game when we hired him,” Moorad said of Byrnes. “At this point, with a couple of years under his belt, I think he is becoming a standard in and of himself. He’s bright. He’s tireless. He’s as thorough as anyone in the world. And he’s committed to winning.”

Byrnes was approached by a representative of “one of the very high-profile teams” last season, managing partner Ken Kendrick said last fall, but the D-Backs made certain their top executives are woo-resistant.

“Down the line, I’m sure there would be interest in both, but the motivation from our standpoint was to lock in two key leaders of the organization and to give them the security we felt like they deserved,” Moorad said.

Byrnes has as much security as any general manager in the game.

Florida general manager Larry Beinfest signed an extension last September that also will take him through 2015. Oakland’s Billy Beane signed an extension last July that will take him through 2014.

The D-Backs did not announce financial terms of Byrnes’ extension, but it is believed to be similar to Beane’s, which is worth about $1 million a year.