Indians Sign Sizemore To Six-Year Deal - indians.com

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. -- The Indians just made the women of Cleveland very happy.
Grady Sizemore, a fan favorite, particularly among females, is going to be calling the city home for quite some time, as he and the Tribe came to terms on a six-year contract with a team option for 2012 that was announced on Wednesday morning. Financial terms were not immediately available.

This is the second long-term deal signed between the Indians and one of their core young players this month. Shortstop Jhonny Peralta was locked in with a five-year commitment on March 10.

"This contract is a further demonstration of the partnership between our players and the Indians organization," general manager Mark Shapiro said. "We are committed to building and sustaining a championship team, and Grady -- as one of the most talented young players in the game today -- is the kind of player and person that can help lead us to that goal."

Sizemore will make a donation to Cleveland Indians Charities over the life of the contract. His deal is the longest tendered by the Indians since they signed Omar Vizquel to a six-year deal in December 1995.

For the Indians, the Sizemore deal is a no-brainer.

The energetic, hard-working center fielder is coming off a breakout first full season in the Majors, during which he hit .289 with 22 home runs and 81 RBIs.

Sizemore, 23, became just the second Indian and the fifth player in the Majors this decade to record 20 doubles, 10 triples, 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases in the same season.

Acquired in the 2002 trade that sent Bartolo Colon to the Expos, Sizemore won the Lou Boudreau Award as the organization's top position player in 2003. He made his debut with the Indians in July 2004, and he had a game-winning hit in just his second day as a big leaguer.

Sizemore, though, didn't figure into the Indians' early 2005 plans until Juan Gonzalez went down with a hamstring injury.

After being optioned down to Triple-A Buffalo at the end of camp, Sizemore was called back up to the Indians just three days later.

This time, he was there to stay.

Sizemore showed that he can hit for average, hit for power, be a legitimate threat on the basepaths and be consistent with his glove. His '05 season saw him crank out his first career grand slam, notch a straight steal of home and close the season with a 62-game errorless streak.

By May 15, he was the Tribe's everyday leadoff batter, and he hit .290 (155-for-534) in 126 starts at the No. 1 spot.

Surely, the Indians knew they had a special player on their hands when Sizemore was coming up through the Minor League system. They just never quite knew how special.

"The player development staff, scouting staff, Major League staff ... to a man, everybody thought this was a special player," Shapiro said of Sizemore this winter. "Nobody doubted his ability. But for that to translate at the pace it did for him and Jhonny Peralta, anybody who tells me they knew that would happen deserves to have a big 'Fraud' label on the top of their head."

What sets Sizemore apart is his tremendous work ethic. This spring, the hustle he showed on the field and the basepaths was more befitting of someone trying to win a job than someone with a secure future.

"That's the way he plays," manager Eric Wedge said. "Regardless of the situation, he plays all out. That's what you love about him."

And the Indians, much like the female fans who wear "Mrs. Sizemore" T-shirts to Jacobs Field, love him enough to make sure he doesn't leave their sight.