Jerry Reinsdorf, and its most controversial player, Albert Belle, join forces when Belle signs with Chicago White Sox
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Jerry Reinsdorf, and its most controversial player, Albert Belle, join forces when Belle signs with Chicago White Sox

1996 – One of Major League Baseball’s most controversial owners, Jerry Reinsdorf, and its most controversial player, Albert Belle, join forces with the Chicago White Sox. Belle signs a record five-year, $55 million deal that makes him the first player to surpass the $10 million per year mark. Reinsdorf, seen as the instigator in the owners’ vote against the collective bargaining agreement, draws the ire of owners in both leagues who feel he sold them out.