Jan. 20 -- PAPERBACK WRITER

So, let's take a momentary break from the Great Ryan Howard Arbitration Debate (it'll only be momentary, I promise) to discuss Chris Coste, everyone's favorite feel-good story who trekked from Philadelphia to Williamsport to Lakewood to Harrisburg last week for Part I of the Phillies' annual winter promotional tour.

By now, you know what Coste went through in 2007. After being sent back to the minors in April, and falling as far as double-A Reading in May, he returned to the majors in June to hit five home runs and collect 22 RBIs in 129 at-bats and cement the Phillies' backup catcher job. But, along the way, he also wrote an 80,000-word autobiography, "The 33-Year-Old Rookie," which will be released March 18 by Random House.

The other day, I had a chance to talk to Coste and his editor, Phillies fan Tim Bartlett, about how a self-taught writer lands a book deal with a major publishing house. (For the record, this will be Coste's second book, which is two more than I've written.) Before March 18, I'm planning to review the book for the 50-cent edition. For now, if you haven't already seen the Sunday paper (a.k.a., the $1.50-center), here's a link to my feature on Coste.

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Back to Howard (told you it would only be momentary): It seems to me the Phillies' $7 million offer is both fair and generous. In baseball, salaries are determined by major-league service time, and Howard just doesn't have enough yet to merit a $10 million contract. Alfonso Soriano didn't get eight figures until his third arbitration year. If Howard and the Phils reach a compromise, he almost certainly will make more than the $7.4 million given to Miguel Cabrera last year, and that would be a record for a first-year arbitration-eligible player.

Meanwhile, please keep weighing in on whether the Phillies should give Howard a long-term contract. My take: I agree with Blog regulars Jamie and Bananafish. The Phillies shouldn't rush into anything. Howard can't be a free agent until 2011, and if he doesn't cut his strikeouts and improve his defense, a long-term deal may not look so good in 2012 or 2013.

In its 2007 yearbook, Baseball Prospectus suggested as much: "Historically, players like Howard, big-bodied guys with limited defensive skills such as Mo Vaughn and Boog Powell, tended to have high but brief peak periods. Their legs just couldn’t carry that much mass for very long, and around 30 their defense plummeted, their playing time dropped due to nagging injuries, and their singles dried up and disappeared. The Phillies should have a three-year window in which they can expect this kind of production from Howard, but should not plan beyond that."

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Talked to Ruben Amaro Jr. the other day, and he said the Phils probably won't make any more moves before spring training begins Feb. 14. That means no Pedro Feliz at third base or Kyle Lohse on the mound.

Your thoughts? Enjoy the rest of your long weekend.