Here’s a look back at the major happenings of the past week:
- Rafael Furcal re-signed with the Dodgers in about as controversial of a way as possible. Paul Kinzer, Furcal’s agent, had asked Braves GM Frank Wren to fax him a terms sheet in order to complete a deal. The next morning, Kinzer backpedaled, told the Braves a deal wasn’t in place, and Furcal signed with the Dodgers later in the day. Wren has sworn off working with Kinzer or any agents in his firm as a result. Furcal will get three years, $30MM from the Dodgers, the same figure Wren and the Braves had offered. If I were from Atlanta, I’d be pretty furious over this one.
- Don’t expect a Jake Peavy trade to happen this winter after all. Padres CEO Sandy Alderson says Peavy will be with the club on Opening Day. We did hear a rumbling about a possible move to Boston for the San Diego ace, however.
- We heard a lot of talk about the Mike Cameron/Yankees possible trade during the Winter Meetings, and those talks resumed early in the week. However, just a few days later, the talks seemed to be dead. The Yankees want the Brewers to pay too much of Kei Igawa’s salary, and Doug Melvin isn’t budging.
- The Phillies re-signed Jamie Moyer to a two-year, $16MM deal. Eight million per year at 45 years old… tough to complain about that if you’re Moyer. The Phillies also inked Chan Ho Park to a one-year, $2.5MM deal.
- Daniel Cabrera signed with the Nationals this week on a one-year, $2.6MM deal. Cabrera’s arm has always been praised, but he’s never put it together in the Majors. The Orioles non-tendered him last week. If a change of scenery can benefit Cabrera, the Nats will have gotten a solid arm for a minimal price. I wouldn’t count too much on that scenario, however.
- Adam Dunn’s first choice for 2009? The Cubs. But is the interest mutual, and could he actually play an effective right field? Dunn says he’s not looking for a huge deal, just a fair one.
- The Yankees won’t be going after Ben Sheets. They’ve already signed their highly talented, but highly injury-prone pitcher for the offseason in A.J. Burnett.
- The Angels re-signed Juan Rivera to a three-year, $12.75MM deal. If he can return to his 2006 form, that’d be a great signing.
- Matt Treanor signed with the Tigers to serve as a backup for Gerald Laird.
- Kenshin Kamakawi is drawing a lot of interest in America. This week, we specifically heard about the Mets, Orioles, Cardinals, and Twins linked to Kawakami. The Twins seem like a strange fit, with their young rotation seemingly set, and especially in light of Ken Rosenthal suggesting that Kawakami may command a larger deal than Hiroki Kuroda’s three-year, $35.3MM deal.
- Here’s a look at all the free agents following the 2009 season.
- And just in case you were wondering, no… Barry Bonds isn’t retiring yet. Think anyone’s changed their stance on baseball’s home run king?
