Australian pitcher Grant Balfour is $US3 million poorer, but he still has 12 million reasons to celebrate.
Balfour, who last month thought he had a $US15 million two-year contract with the Baltimore Orioles only to be dumped by the Major League Baseball club just hours before a press conference to announce the signing, has been picked up by the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Rays announced on Friday the Sydney relief pitcher had signed a two-year $US12 million deal.
It is a homecoming for Balfour, 36, who played with the Rays from 2007 to 2010 before spending the last three years with the Oakland Athletics.
Balfour told reporters the Orioles debacle was "in the past", although at the time he was furious when the club walked away citing concerns about his right shoulder.
"A lot of my great memories are here in Tampa Bay," Balfour, who has a house in Florida, said.
"I call it home."
Balfour, also played down the $US3 million he will miss out on, telling reporters other MLB teams offered him more money but he wanted to play for a title contender like the Rays.
"This is a very big deal for us," Rays principal owner Stuart Sternberg said.
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