Arbitration avoided: Giants sign Lincecum for 2 years/$23MM

Two-time Cy Young award winner Tim Lincecum avoided arbitration today and has signed a two-year deal with the Giants for $23 million.  The deal is now pending the proverbial physical. (And maybe a drug test).

On Thursday, the Giants offered Lincecum a three-year, $37MM deal that would have paid him $9.5MM in ’10, $12.5MM in ’11, and $15MM in ’12.  However, Lincecum’s agent Rick Thurman ”countered with a proposal north of $40 million.”  Supposedly, Thurman wanted the first-year salary within a multiyear deal to be close to the $13MM figure they submitted.

The new deal will reportedly pay the Giants’ ace $8MM in 2010 (plus a $1MM signing bonus), meaning he will not break Ryan Howard‘s arbitration record.  A few weeks ago, the two sides were $5 million apart when the Giants submitted an arbitration figure of $8MM against Lincecum’s $13MM.

Lincecum becomes the highest-paid pitcher in his first year of eligibility, topping Boston closer Jonathan Papelbon‘s $6.25 million last year.

In addition, Lincecum can earn $200,000 for pitching 225 innings, $500,000 for each Cy Young Award, $250,000 for second, $100,000 for third, $75,000 for fourth and $50,000 for fifth, $100,000 each time he’s an All-Star, $100,000 for NL MVP, $75,000 for World Series MVP and $50,000 for NLCS MVP.

OK, Giants fans, time to chime in.  Now that Lincecum has the dough, will he pitch like a man wanting mad money, or will we see a drop off in performance?

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