Ryan Howard Wants $18M Contract

Winning the World Series is always good business. Ryan Howard of the 2008 World Series champion Philadelphia Phillies proved that once again on Tuesday when he asked for $18 million in salary arbitration. The Phillies offered $14 million.

Either way, Howard is going to be paid a hefty sum for 2009. And judging by the World Series championship and his stats, Howard will definitely deserve every penny. In 2008, Howard hit 48 homers, drove in 146 RBIs and had 105 runs. The only blemish in his stats was his pedestrian batting average of .251.

Over the last three seasons, Howard has emerged as one of the most feared hitters in all of baseball. In each season, he has at least 47 homers and at least 136. The good news for the Phillies is he won’t become a free agent until after the 2011 season. If he were a free agent this season, he would have undoubtedly earned a contract paying well over $100 million.

Howard’s request of $18 million is far and away the most of any player in arbitration this season. In fact, it’s more than twice than the $8 million Prince Fielder asked for and Fielder had the second highest request.