Angels agreed to terms with RHP Ervin Santana on a four-year, $30 million contract with a club option for 2013.
The option is worth $13 million and includes a $1 million buyout. Santana was three years away from free agency, so the money is about right. Even if he can't keep pitching like he did in 2008, when he was arguably one of the AL's top-five starters, he probably would have earned about as much in arbitration and in his first year of free agency.
Now its time for John Lackey to get his deal. Santana is a good pitcher but Lackey would be first on my list of guys to lock up if I were the Angels. Its a good deal and the Angels should be near the top of the AL West for many years to come.