Olney’s Latest: Winter Meetings

As we wait for arbitration decisions, Buster Olney offers his latest on the winter meetings:

• CC Sabathia, who will be sitting down with the Red Sox and Yankees today or tomorrow, may want to wait for Mark Teixeira to sign first. If the Angels don’t land Sabathia, they could be expected to compete with the Yankees $140MM offer.
• Francisco Rodriguez is not going to get the 5 year, $75MM originally anticipated by his agents and he may find it in his best interest to seek a 3 year deal, and re-enter free agency, perhaps in a better market, before he turns 30.
• Says Olney, "Look, [Jake] Peavy is going to be traded, and what will be left is a team looking at a long rebuilding process."
• The Nats are courting Adam Dunn as well as Teixeira, pointing out that Jim Bowden ran the Reds when they drafted Dunn. No word on Dunn’s interest in Washington.
• Sources say the White Sox moving Jermaine Dye is "overblown." He’ll cost $11.5MM next year with a $1MM buyout for 2010 and teams in need of a corner outfielder can target Dunn or Bobby Abreu rather than give up prospects to the White Sox.
• Orlando Cabrera has been made aware that Alexei Ramirez is the starting shortstop in 2009 and, for that reason, OC is expected to decline arbitration even in a depressed shortstop market.
• Olney reports that Rafael Furcal’s final contract request was 4 years, $52MM. He wound up rejecting the offer of 4 years, $35-40MM.