David Price agrees to $19.75M deal

DETROIT -- David Price has reached a $19.75 million, one-year deal with the Detroit Tigers, avoiding arbitration.

The Tigers confirmed one-year contracts Friday with Price, right-hander Alfredo Simon and outfielder J.D. Martinez, avoiding arbitration with all three. Right-handed reliever Al Alburquerque is Detroit's only player left in arbitration.

Price's contract is the largest one-year deal for a player who filed for arbitration, topping Max Scherzer's $15,525,000 agreement with the Tigers last year.

Detroit acquired Price in a deadline deal in July, and the move paid dividends when the left-hander held Minnesota scoreless in a division-clinching victory on the final day of the regular season. Detroit won the AL Central for a fourth consecutive year.

Price will be a big part of Detroit's attempt to defend its spot atop the division, which looks increasingly tenuous after Kansas City went to the World Series as a wild card last year and the Chicago White Sox made a few significant moves this offseason. Cleveland could also be a threat with its promising rotation.

He is part of the Tigers' star-studded rotation that also includes Justin Verlander and Anibal Sanchez, although the Tigers traded Rick Porcello this offseason and may lose Scherzer to free agency.

Scherzer remains on the open market, and the Tigers have already shuffled their rotation a bit more. They acquired right-hander Shane Greene from the New York Yankees, andAlfredo Simonwas traded from Cincinnati toDetroit last month.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.