THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
ST. PETERSBURG - The American League champion Tampa Bay Rays made another move Monday to bolster their depth and right-handed hitting, agreeing to a $1,000,018, one-year contract with outfielder Gabe Kapler.
The 33-year-old - who considers 18 his lucky number - came out of retirement last season to bat .301 with eight homers, 17 doubles, 38 RBIs and a career-best .498 slugging percentage in 96 games with the Milwaukee Brewers.
After playing parts of four seasons in Boston, Kapler spent 2007 managing Red Sox Class A affiliate Greenville. He called the year away from the majors a learning experience that was "really important to my development as a human being more so than as a baseball player."
"I think it just provided me with an opportunity to take a breather and realize that I had a lot of passion for playing left in me," Kapler said during a conference call. "That said, I also learned a lot of lessons about how to be strong mentally, and those lessons carried over into 2008 … and I expect to be able to build on them in 2009."
The deal with Kapler, a .273 career hitter with 72 homers and 340 RBIs, comes a week after the American League champions agreed to a $16 million, two-year contract with former Philadelphia slugger Pat Burrell.
Kapler's versatility as an outfielder was a factor, as well as his 26 homers and .294 career average against left-handed pitching. He hit .354 with four home runs and 22 RBIs against lefties in 2008.
The amount the Rays could afford to pay Kapler after giving Burrell a deal that vice president Andrew Friedman said would limit Tampa Bay's spending for the rest of this off-season was a factor as well.
"That was the extent of our flexibility," Friedman said.
Kapler started 43 games for the Brewers. With B.J. Upton recovering from shoulder surgery performed after the World Series, his addition provides some flexibility for manager Joe Maddon.
"He further upgrades us against left-handed pitching. He can play all three outfield spots, and it's further insurance in the event that B.J. is not ready opening day," Friedman said.
