Fausto Carmona gets $15 million from Indians

The Cleveland Indians tucked away one of their aces.

Fausto Carmona, a surprising 19-game winner who wasn't bugged by swarming insects in his first postseason start last October, agreed Thursday to a $15 million, four-year contract with the Indians, a deal that potentially can earn him $48 million.

There was no rush to sign the 24-year-old, but the Indians are convinced Carmona's best days are ahead and rewarded him with the highest guarantee to a pre-arbitration-eligible starter.

"This is a guy who has shown he wants to be great," Indians general manager Mark Shapiro said. "He has exceptional toughness, exceptional talent and intelligence. Those things combined with his work ethic made this a very easy decision."

Carmona gets a $750,000 signing bonus and guaranteed salaries of $500,000 this year, $2.75 million in 2009, $4.9 million in 2010 and $6.1 million in 2011.

The Indians have options for $7 million in 2012, $9 million in 2013 and $12 million in 2014. The price of the first option could escalate by $1 million and the price on the other two by $2 million each depending on whether Carmona places among the top five in Cy Young Award voting in the prior two seasons.

The Indians and Carmona's agent, Jorge Brito, agreed to the deal before his first start this season, a dominating win over the Chicago White Sox. The team wanted to wait until it completed a West Coast trip before announcing Carmona's new contract.

Boston: A Vermont Air National Guard pilot who took part in a flyover of Fenway Park during opening-day ceremonies has been grounded for making an improper maneuver near the park, a Guard spokesman said. The F-16 pilot flew under and over the other three F-16s in the formation at about 1,200 feet over Boston on Tuesday afternoon because he was going too fast and was late joining the formation, Guard spokesman Lt. Col. Lloyd Goodrow said. "It is a legitimate maneuver. It is normally done at 5,000 feet or above," Goodrow said. "The crowd loved it, but it was not a planned maneuver." Goodrow would not release the name of the pilot.

Minnesota: The Twins now have a few more days to decide whether to call up Francisco Liriano. With rain postponing their game against the Chicago White Sox until June 9, the Twins simply will move their starters back a day. That filled a potential hole in their rotation for Sunday and delayed a decision involving Liriano. Livan Hernandez was scheduled to pitch against fellow Cuban Jose Contreras on Thursday, but he'll start today at Kansas City, followed by Boof Bonser on Saturday and Nick Blackburn on Sunday. Scott Baker is scheduled to pitch Monday at Detroit, but it's not clear who will start Tuesday. One possibility is Liriano. An All-Star in 2006, he missed last season while recuperating from elbow surgery.

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