Would You Say No To An Extra $20,000?

The sting of losing John Cangelosi got worse in 1987. While some people accuse ball clubs of wasting money and throwing it recklessly at players, few usually do. I'm guessing that the White Sox didn't read Jim Winn's contract thoroughly enough. Who can blame them, it's Jim Winn. His last name had nothing to do with his performance.

Jim was pleasantly surprised when the White Sox cut a check to him for an extra $20,000. Was he being rewarded for a good season? Hardly. His 1987 season consisted of 4 wins, 6 losses, 6 saves and a ERA of 4.79. He was so bad for the lowly Sox, that they released Jim at the season's end.

Apparently, Jim was the beneficiary of an incentive clause in his contract. But wait, there was no incentive clause in the contract. Notified of their mistake, the White Sox told Jim he could keep the money. I guess Jim can think of it as severance pay. If the White Sox are ever looking to throw away $20,000 again, I will volunteer to be the recipient.