When I looked back at April 2008 I was surprised by how much action there was. So why not take a look through the MLBTR archives now that we've begun another month? If last year is any indication, May could be filled with old players trying to find teams and young players getting extensions. Here's a look at what happened a year ago:
- Julio Franco finally retired, at the age of 49; Mike Piazza called it a career, too.
- There were rumors that Kenny Lofton and David Wells might return.
- Some of baseball's young stars signed long-term extensions: Hanley Ramirez topped the rest with his six year $70MM deal, and Ryan Braun, Scott Kazmir and Joakim Soria all inked multi-year deals as well.
- The Rich Harden rumors started up a year ago this time.
- Coco Crisp was a hot topic, but he wasn't dealt until after the season.
- The Cubs picked up Jim Edmonds after he was released by the Padres.
- The Marlins added Jacque Jones after the Tigers released him.
- And some things never change: Freddy Garcia was available as a free agent and Pedro Martinez was insisting that he wasn't about to retire.
