Dozier agrees to $20 million, 4-year contract with Twins

FILE - In this March 15, 2015, file photo, Minnesota Twins' Brian Dozier hits a two-run home run in the third inning during an exhibition spring training baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals in Fort Myers, Fla. Dozier and the Twins have agreed to a $20 million, four-year contract. The deal was announced Tuesday, March 24, 2015. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File) FILE - In this March 15, 2015, file photo, Minnesota Twins' Brian Dozier hits a two-run home run in the third inning during an exhibition spring training baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals in Fort Myers, Fla. Dozier and the Twins have agreed to a $20 million, four-year contract. The deal was announced Tuesday, March 24, 2015. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)

By Associated Press March 24, 2015 3 min read

The Minnesota Twins gave second baseman Brian Dozier a new contract, covering his eligibility for salary arbitration in the coming years.

The deal wasn’t long enough to affect his future timing of free agency, but Dozier sounded as though he’s never planning to be on the open market. Minnesota has quickly become a place he’s comfortable playing, despite being yet to experience a winning season in his major league career.

Dozier agreed to a $20 million, four-year contract with the Twins on Tuesday, a deal announced before Minnesota’s exhibition game against Toronto.

“We explored a lot of different things,” Dozier said at the team’s spring training home in Fort Myers, Florida. “They know my desire to be here and spend my entire career here. I love it here, but at the same time it’s what seems the best fit for both sides.”

Dozier already was under contract for this season, at $590,000 in the majors and $324,000 in the minors. The new deal will give him $2 million this year, $3 million in 2016, $6 million in 2017 and $9 million in 2018. He would be eligible for free agency after that.