Philadelphia ? The contracts for relief pitchers have been lucrative this offseason, and Ugueth Urbina certainly stood to benefit from the bull market.

He hasn’t.

Instead, the former Phillies reliever has been in a Venezuelan jail since last month, accused of attempted murder Oct. 15 on family property. Urbina and others are accused of beating farmhands with machetes, pouring gasoline and paint thinner on them, and trying to light them on fire.

If he is convicted, Urbina could face 10 years in prison.

ESPN recently talked to Urbina in jail, and the interview was to be shown Sunday night on “SportsCenter.”

“I swear to God, I’d rather be dead than be in jail in Venezuela,” said Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, a Venezuelan native who has visited Urbina twice in the Caracas prison where he is being held pending trial. “Jail in Venezuela is not like jail in the United States.”

“I love my country, but here there are people that love money,” Urbina told ESPN. “What do they gain from this? They say that it was me (who attacked them) so that they can get money.”

Urbina stood to make money this offseason. Billy Wagner and B.J. Ryan signed the most lucrative contracts for relief pitchers. Wagner left the Phillies and signed a four-year, $43 million contract with the New York Mets. Ryan signed a five-year, $47.5 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Urbina, 31, made $4 million with the Phillies last season.

He might have received a contract in line with those given to Tom Gordon (three years, $18 million from the Phils), Kyle Farnsworth (three years, $17 million from the New York Yankees), and Trevor Hoffman (two years, $13.5 million from the San Diego Padres).

If the Phillies had re-signed Wagner, Urbina would not have been back because they would not have been able to afford him. But with Wagner going to the Mets, would the Phils have been interested in a trouble-free Urbina? Possibly.

Ruben Amaro Jr., the Phillies’ assistant general manager, said last month that the team had discussed bringing back Urbina at one point, although re-signing Wagner had been its priority.

What if Urbina had escaped charges in the incident? It’s doubtful the Phillies would have come after him. Phils general manager Pat Gillick said last month that Urbina had too much “baggage.”

The Phillies did not offer him salary arbitration last week.

Of course, Urbina has more important things to worry about.

The pitcher’s lawyer, Jose Luis Tamayo, maintains Urbina’s innocence.

“If you believe the testimony of the victims, it’s unexplainable why Ugueth Urbina did not kill these people because he had ample opportunity, according to their testimony,” Tamayo told ESPN.

Ricardo Osal, one of the alleged victims, told the network: “Following his orders, they proceeded to pour the flammable liquids on us, and by his orders only, they threw matches on us three times in a row. Three times they lit us on fire and three times in a row we jumped into the pool. All by orders from Mr. Ugueth Urbina.”