SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Postseason star Cody Ross has avoided salary arbitration with the World Series champion San Francisco Giants, agreeing to terms on a $6.3 million, one-year contract Tuesday.
The deal marks a nice raise for the former kid rodeo clown. Ross earned $4.45 million last season, when he joined the Giants on a waiver claim from Florida on Aug. 22.
Ross became one of the Giants' most reliable players down the stretch and during an improbable title run. The franchise won its first championship since 1954 and first since moving West in 1958.
The 30-year-old Ross quickly became a fan favorite in the Bay Area. He hit three of his five postseason home runs during the NL championship series against Philadelphia. The NL West champion Giants - in the playoffs for the first time since 2003 - won in six games against the favored Phillies and Ross received MVP honors. He drove in 10 runs during the playoffs, two in San Francisco's five-game World Series win over the Texas Rangers.
Son of a team roper and steer wrestler, Ross as a boy would dress up as a clown for weekend rodeo events with hopes of one day getting in the ring. But he discovered baseball first.
Pitcher Jonathan Sanchez reached agreement on a $4.8 million, one-year deal. The left-hander pitched a no-hitter on July 10, 2009, then went 13-9 with a 3.07 ERA in 33 starts and 34 outings overall last season.
Right-handed reliever Ramon Ramirez, another midseason addition last year, also avoided arbitration by agreeing on a $1.65 million, one-year deal.
Ramirez went 1-0 with a 0.67 ERA in 25 outings for the Giants. He was acquired from Boston in a trade deadline deal.