ORLANDO, Fla. DeMario Davis Saints Jersey . -- Marlon Byrd cashed in on his comeback season. Byrd and the Philadelphia Phillies agreed Tuesday to a $16 million, two-year contract, a deal that came less than a year after he was playing in Mexicos winter league. The 36-year-old outfielder hit a career-high 24 homers last season for the New York Mets and Pittsburgh, which acquired him on Aug. 27. He batted .364 with one homer and five RBIs in six playoff games after hitting .291 during the season with 88 RBIs, one short of his career best. "Marlon adds a significant upgrade both offensively and defensively to our outfield," Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said in a statement. "He has been particularly productive against left-handed pitching, which was a serious challenge for us this past season." Byrd was drafted by the Phillies and began his big league career in Philadelphia. His agreement calls for $8 million in each of the next two seasons and includes an $8 million team option for 2016, The option would become guaranteed if he has 1,100 at-bats in the next two seasons, including at least 550 in 2015, or 600 at-bats in 2015. "If you dont want to give up your first-round pick, Marlon Byrd is arguably the best available outfield bat," Pirates general manager Neal Huntington said. "We feared he was out of our price range immediately. We stayed engaged in the process, and Marlon and his agents talked about wanting to come back to Pittsburgh. He loved his time there. The environment and playing for a winner and playing in front of that fan base was something that really intrigued him." A career .280 hitter with 106 homers and 533 RBIs, Byrd was released by Boston in June 2012, then given a 50-game suspension 11 days later following a positive test for Tamoxifen, which can reduce side effects of steroid use and increase testosterone. At the time, Byrd said he mistakenly used the medication for a recurrence of a condition that earlier required surgery. He says he did not use it for performance enhancement. He played winter ball for the Tomateros de Culiacan (Culiacan Tomato Growers) and signed a minor league contract with the Mets on Feb. 1. He wound up on their big league roster for a base salary of $700,000 and earned another $100,000 in performance bonuses based on plate appearances. Both the dollars and the years offered by the Phillies were at a level the Pirates were unprepared to match in talks with agents Sam and Seth Levinson. "The timing really bit us, and Ruben did a great job of going out and getting his guy early -- what we did with Russ Martin a year ago," Huntington said. "We werent in a position to be able to move this quickly." Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said the deal was an indication of inflation in free-agent prices. "Had you asked me the question three or four months ago, I might have been surprised, but not in the light of whats happened since the end of the season," he said. "There havent been that many signings, but this one is consistent with the others." Philadelphia had sought a right-handed hitting outfielder with power since Jayson Werth left for Washington following the 2010 season. Ben Francisco, John Mayberry Jr. and Delmon Young werent solutions; Hunter Pence was acquired in July 2011 and traded a year later. Darin Ruf hit 14 homers in 251 at-bats last season while starting 27 games in right field, 15 in left and 28 at first base. But Ruf, a converted first baseman, is hardly the defensive player Byrd is and is viewed as a role player. Philadelphias outfielders hit .259 with 57 homers and a .407 slugging percentage this year. Byrd could be a major upgrade. "He is an experienced middle-of-the-order hitter who creates some balance to our lineup," Amaro said. "With his talent and clubhouse presence, we believe Marlon will be a solid addition to our club as we address our needs and plan to contend in 2014 and beyond." Byrd was once a prized prospect in the Phillies minor league system. He finished fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2003 after hitting .303, but struggled the next two seasons and was traded to Washington. Byrd has also played for Texas, the Chicago Cubs and Boston in a 12-year career with seven teams. He was an NL All-Star with the Cubs in 2010 and his best season before last year came with the Rangers in 2009 when he batted .283 with 20 homers and 89 RBIs. Jermon Bushrod Saints Jersey .Mallais and his team out of Saint John defeated James Grattan 5-4 in Fredericton.The 2015 Tim Hortons Brier from Feb. Marcus Davenport Jersey . Neither striker Demba Ba nor Fernando Torres came close to scoring as Chelsea was left unsuccessfully appealing for penalties in this drab penultimate game of the season. "Our strikers are good strikers, no doubt about that, but players with some specific qualities," Mourinho said. http://www.saintsrookiestore.com/Saints-Cameron-Meredith-Jersey/ .Before a raucous sellout crowd, the Hawks won for the 29th time in 31 games to extend their Eastern-best record to 36-8.As usual, pretty much everyone chipped in.Four starters were in double figures and backup point guard Dennis Schroder led a spurt at the start of the fourth quarter that helped the Hawks pull away.Steven Stamkos injury was not enough to prevent him from being named to the squad as Canada general manager Steve Yzerman is fully aware of what the 23-year-old can do when healthy. Fielding questions after the announcement, Yzerman noted that the brain trust had to take a chance on Stamkos being healthy, since they would be unable to add him to the roster later on. "If hes healthy hes one of the 25 best players, obviously, in Canada," Yzerman said after the roster announcement. "His rehab and recovery are going very well," Yzerman said. "The doctors are pleased with what they see on X-ray and I think every day people see the updates of him skating and whatnot. Hes pushing himself extremely hard." Stamkos is still skating on his own as he recovers from a broken leg. The native of Markham, Ontario has been out of action since crashing into a goal post in Nov. 11. Still, Yzerman stressed that his team is willing to be patient with Stamkos. "Well see how this X-ray goes. Hell continue to work and well wait and well make that decision when we get closer to the Olympics." The announcement was not as kind to Stamkos linemate Martin St. Louis. The 38-year-old has managed 38 points this season despite playing the majority of it without Stamkos. Still, the Canadian brain trust made the decision to leave the veteran off the roster, despite Yzerman having a long look at St. Louis as Tampa Bay Lightning general manager. "I guess we thought with Steve Yzerman being thee executive director of Team Canada and the general manager of the Tampa Bay Lightning and with Marty St. TreQuan Smith Jersey. Louis playing as well as he did, especially after Steven Stamkos went down with injury that he would be there," TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie said. "But we also sensed all along that the coaching staff might not have been as big on Marty St. Louis as the management team or as Steve Yzerman might have been." St. Louis meanwhile, voiced his disappointment after Tampa Bays 4-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets Tuesday. "For Team Canada, you guys can imagine how I feel, obviously, Im extremely disappointed and Ill just leave it at that," he said, refusing to speak more about the issue. In the end, it put Yzerman in a difficult professional position. "Youve got to hand it to Steve Yzerman," McKenzie said. "Thats a personally – and even professionally, with the impact that this could have with the Tampa Bay Lightning – a huge blow to St. Louis and his psyche right now." Lightning head coach Jon Cooper says that despite being a veteran, being cut is still hard on a player like St. Louis. "Hes a human, so I dont care if hes one year in the league or 20 years in the league, Im sure hes extremely disappointed, as we all are," said Cooper. "Knowing Marty, this is probably going to motivate the snot out of him." St. Louis is not expected to address the media until after the Lightnings game Tuesday night in Winnipeg. Cheap Ducks Jerseys Cheap Coyotes Jerseys Cheap Bruins Jerseys Cheap Sabres Jerseys Cheap Flames Jerseys Cheap Hurricanes Jerseys Cheap Blackhawks Jerseys Cheap Avalanche Jerseys Cheap Blue Jackets Jerseys Cheap Stars Jerseys Cheap Red Wings Jerseys Cheap Oilers Jerseys Cheap Florida Panthers Jerseys Cheap Los Angeles Kings Jerseys Cheap Wild Jerseys ' ' '