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ORLANDO, Fla. -- 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. Carl Landry 76ers Jersey . -- Nathan Pancel scored twice as the Sudbury Wolves defeated the North Bay Battalion 4-2 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. Wilt Chamberlain 76ers Jersey . Aduriz headed home Markel Susaetas cross in the sixth minute to open the scoring at San Mames Stadium. He bettered that with a long-range blast that went in off the goal frame in the 18th, and converted a penalty in the 72nd after Diego Mainz was sent off for fouling Aduriz with only the goalkeeper to beat. http://www.official76ersonline.us/darryl-dawkins-7...rs-jers ey/ . Peter Holland and Brad Staubitz were sent to Toronto on Saturday as the Maple Leafs traded defenceman Jesse Blacker and draft picks to the Anaheim Ducks. Isaiah Canaan 76ers Jersey . After Mondays hard-fought loss, the wait seemed longer than usual. Getting set to go their separate ways for a short Christmas break, the Raptors coach credited his team for their effort on a seemingly impossible three-game road trip, urging them to build on that success when they get back to work at the end of the week. Swingman Carl Landry Jersey . SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. OKLAHOMA CITY -- Sacramento coach Michael Malone said Kevin Durant wouldnt score 54 points against his Kings like he did against Golden State two nights earlier. Turns out, the alternative wasnt any fun for Malone, either. Durant scored 30 points and embraced a role as a facilitator by finishing with nine assists to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder past Sacramento 108-93 on Sunday night. "I told you Durant wasnt going to get 54 tonight, right?" Malone said with a smile after the game. Durant, coming off that career-high scoring effort on Friday, still shot 10 for 15 from the field on Sunday and scored at least 30 points for the seventh straight game. Serge Ibaka added 20 points and benefited of several of Durants passes. "My teammates were setting screens for me," Durant said. "We were seeing something in pick-and-roll. Serge was doing a great job of slipping out of it and knocking down shots. I was trying to be aggressive and put pressure on the rim and the defence and if they draw in, I kick it out and if not, I try to lay the ball in, take a good shot." Reggie Jackson added 16 points for the Thunder, who won their third straight. Oklahoma City scored 34 points off Sacramentos 21 turnovers and had 20 second-chance points. Oklahoma City improved to 8-5 without All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook since he had surgery on his right knee last month. "They execute well and they do a great job of playing together, so all credit to them," Cousins said. "But at the same time, I think we did a terrible job defensively of guarding those guys tonight. We made it easy for them to run their sets. With that being said, thats why they had the type of game they did." Isaiah Thomas scored a career-high 38 points for the Kings, but he slowed down in the second half as the Thunder pulled away. "He got hot," Durant said. "He hit a lot of 3s. He got to the foul line a lot. He was coming down, pulling up. I think our pick-and-roll defence was a loot better in the second half, making him drive a little more, forcing him to our bigs.dddddddddddd" DeMarcus Cousins had 16 points and 14 rebounds for Sacramento. Rudy Gay scored just six points for the Kings and was ejected after picking up two technical fouls in the fourth quarter. The score was tied at 43 late in the second quarter before the Thunder went on a 12-4 run, highlighted by Durants lob to Ibaka for a two-handed jam. The Thunder held the Kings to 6-for-17 shooting in the second quarter to take a 57-52 lead at the break. Thomas scored 27 points in the first half on 7-for-11 shooting. Cousins made a layup early in the third quarter to tie the score at 60, but the Thunder responded with an 8-0 run, including four points by Jackson, to put Oklahoma City ahead and force the Kings to call a timeout. Durant found Jackson a little later for a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 75-64 and force the Kings to call another timeout. Durant hit a 3 from straight away to bump Oklahoma Citys lead to 87-70, and the Thunder led 89-74 at the end of the quarter. Gay was called for two technicals for arguing with an official and was ejected with 10:01 remaining. The Thunder led 95-74 after the free throws. "Rudy, obviously, I think he was frustrated with the way he was playing and he wound up getting thrown out of the game, which is unfortunate," Malone said. "But tomorrow is another day. Well bounce back, well work on some things, watch some film and we still have two games on this trip that we feel like we have a great chance to win." NOTES: Oklahoma City won the first meeting between the teams, 97-95 in Sacramento. ... Thomas scored 21 points in the fourth quarter of the earlier meeting, then scored 14 in the first quarter on Sunday. ... The Kings shot 62 per cent in the first quarter to lead 30-28 at the end of the period. ... Sacramento F Jason Thompson was issued a technical foul in the third quarter. ... Thunder F/C Nick Collison scored a season-high 10 points. 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