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The Cleveland Indians have built up their core by locking up young players to long-term deals that provide cost-certainty, a model a handful of other teams are following with their emerging stars.

This year the Indians signed centre-fielder Grady Sizemore to a $23.45 million (U.S.), six-year deal and gave starter Cliff Lee $14 million over three years, adding to their nucleus.

Ace C.C. Sabathia ($17.75 million, two years), fearsome slugger Travis Hafner ($7 million, three years), catcher Victor Martinez ($15.5 million, five years) and shortstop Jhonny Peralta ($13 million, five years) were already under lock for the coming seasons.

"It's nice to be on a team that has good young players that have signed up for a few years," Hafner said Wednesday. "You feel like you have a chance to get in the playoffs and win a World Series, while you have the guys together."

But for the Indians, whose payroll of about $57 million ranks 24th in the majors, it's about more than just that. Players with zero to six years of experience in the majors are under the team's control financially, with three years of arbitration serving as the only way for them to drive up their salaries before free agency.

The thinking is by giving players more money up front and the security of a long-term deal, the team will save money down the road when the players enter their top earning years.

That approach worked for the Indians of the early 1990s, when a locked-up core of Jim Thome, Albert Belle, Carlos Baerga, Kenny Lofton and Charles Nagy helped them dominate the decade.

And despite a rough 2006, they were just 66-71 heading into Wednesday's action after opening the year with thoughts of contending, there's hope this new generation of players can repeat that success.

"As a player when you're offered something like that you want to know you're in a situation where the organization is building into the future with a core group," said Sizemore. "It's a good spot to be in."

The formula isn't reserved to teams on a tight budget — the New York Mets did it with third baseman David Wright ($55 million, six years) and shortstop Jose Reyes ($23.25 million, four years).

Usually however, such thinking is the domain of baseball's poor, like the Pittsburgh Pirates who gave all-star Jason Bay of Trail, B.C., $18.25 million over four years and the Oakland Athletics who handed starter Rich Harden of Victoria $9 million for four years.

There are both benefits and risks to the approach and the Toronto Blue Jays experienced both when they gave such contracts to Vernon Wells and Eric Hinske back in 2003.

Wells, given $14.7 over five years, is an example of how well the model can work, as the Blue Jays could end up saving an estimated $10 million by the time his contract expires after the 2007 season.

Had the Blue Jays gone year-to-year with him, Wells would likely command a salary around $10 million alone in 2007, rather than the $5.6 million his contract calls for.

Hinske's case was just the opposite, as his career nosedived once he signed a $14.75 million, five year deal after winning AL Rookie of the Year honours in 2002. The Blue Jays ended up overpaying badly for him and they agreed to eat half of his $5.6 million salary next year in order to deal him to Boston last month.

That's why general manager J.P. Ricciardi says it would take a special case to make him do it again.

"One really worked well for us, one didn't," he said. "I think we probably wouldn't jump into them as fast as we have in the past, so we would be very selective in who we did it with.

"In the Hinske case, that money kind of locked us a bit and we weren't able to go forward so I think we're probably more inclined to go year-to-year with most people."

Despite giving up millions in potential earnings by signing early, Wells said he has no regrets about committing early. As a two-time all-star and Gold Glove winner, he knows a big payoff is waiting for him when he becomes a free agent after the 2007 season and he's been able to play the past four years knowing his family's financial future was already set.

"You may as well get your guaranteed money, while you're still on their terms, you're going to be on their terms for six years anyway," said Wells, also the Blue Jays' player-union rep.

"It allows you to relax, you don't have to worry about going year-to-year, you can just sit back and play the game of baseball and try to make yourself look good. ..n.

"I have money in the bank and I have money that my kids are going to be able to use, hopefully I can get some more that their kids will be able to use."

Sizemore applied the same logic when he signed his deal in March.

"They came to me and asked me what I was looking for and what I wanted to do and I told them I wanted to be part of this organization," he said. "You can go year-to-year but you might have a down year, you might get hurt but I just knew this is what I want and went from there."

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COMMUNITY LEADERS: Major League Baseball announced the 30 team nominees for the 2006 Roberto Clemente Award on Wednesday and there was plenty of Canadian content on the list.

Los Angeles Dodgers closer Eric Gagne of Mascouche, Que., Chicago Cubs stopper Ryan Dempster of Gibsons, B.C., and Toronto Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay were among the players nominated for combining on-field success with devoted community work. Former Blue Jays first baseman Carlos Delgado of the New York Mets was also on the list.

The award was established in 2002 to honour Roberto Clemente, the 12-time all-star and Hall of Famer who was killed on New Year's Eve 1972 while delivering supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.

Commissioner Bud Selig will select and announce a winner from 30 local recipients prior to Game 3 of the World Series.