With yet another crazy week of hot stove madness, let's step away from the action to catch up on the week that was here at MLBTR…
- For the second time in as many offseasons, the Angels signed the top free agent position player to a surprising long-term contract. The Angels officially signedJosh Hamilton a five-year contract worth $125MM.
- Zack Greinke signed with the Dodgers to a six-year, $147MM deal as he'll remain in Los Angeles. The 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner pitched to a 3.48 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 212 1/3 innings split between the Brewers and Angels in 2012, his fourth 200+ inning season in the last five years.
- Kansas City agreed to acquire right-hander James Shields, right-hander Wade Davis and a player to be named or cash from Tampa Bay in exchange for outfielder Wil Myers, right-hander Jake Odorizzi, left-hander Mike Montgomery and third baseman Patrick Leonard.
- The Diamondbacks acquired shortstop Didi Gregorius, left-handed pitcher Tony Sipp, and first baseman Lars Anderson from the Indians in exchange for right-handed pitchers Trevor Bauer, Matt Albers and Bryan Shaw. The Reds are receiving Shin-Soo Choo and Jason Donald in the swap and are sending Drew Stubbs to Cleveland as well.
- The Dodgers signed Korean left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu for $36MM over six years. The 25-year-old has been one of the Korea Baseball Organization's most dominant pitchers over the last several years, helping Korea win Olympic gold in 2008 and finish second in the 2009 World Baseball Classic.
- The Indians reached an agreement with Mark Reynolds on a one-year contract worth $6MM plus $1.5MM in potential incentives.
- The Phillies agreed to sign Mike Adams to a two-year contract worth $12MM with a third-year vesting option. He pitched to a 3.27 ERA with 7.7 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 52 1/3 innings for the Rangers this year.
- The Phillies agreed to sign John Lannan to a one-year contract worth $2.5MM with another $2.5M in bonuses. He's thrown at least 180 total innings in each of the last five seasons and has a career 53.0% ground ball rate, which is well-above-average.
- The Yankees announced that they designated left-hander Josh Spence for assignment. The move creates 40-man roster space for recently-signed infielder Kevin Youkilis.
- The Tigers agreed to sign free agent right-hander Anibal Sanchez to a five-year, $80MM contract. Sanchez posted a 3.86 ERA with 7.7 K/9, 2.2 BB/9 and a 46.4% ground ball rate in 195 2/3 regular season innings this past season.
- The Yankees agreed to re-sign Ichiro Suzuki to a two-year contract that will likely be worth $13MM. The 39-year-old posted a .283/.307/.390 batting line in 663 plate appearances for the Mariners and Yankees this past season.
- The Cardinals agreed to sign utility player Ty Wigginton to a two-year deal worth a total of $5MM. Wigginton spent the 2012 season with the Phillies, posting a .235/.314/.375 batting line with 11 home runs and 11 doubles in 360 plate appearances.
- The Braves signed infielder Ramiro Pen a to a one-year, Major League contract. Pena, 27, has made just 40 Major League plate appearances over the last two seasons and has a career .233/.266/.288 line in 338 career PAs with the Yankees since 2009.
- The Red Sox agreed to sign free agent right-hander Ryan Dempster to a two-year, $26.5MM contract. Dempster, 35, posted a 3.38 ERA with 8.0 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 43.5% ground ball rate in 173 innings for the Cubs and Rangers in 2012.
- The Twins signed Kevin Correia to a two-year, $10MM contract. The right-hander will earn $4.5MM in 2013 and $5.5MM in 2014.
- Outfielder Shane Victorino signed a three-year, $39MM deal with the Red Sox after struggling in 2012 to put up the numbers that made him a star with the Phillies. Victorino posted a .255/.321/.383 line for the Phillies and Dodgers.
- Free agent infielder Jack Hannahan signed a two-year, $4MM deal with the Reds to back up Todd Frazier. In 318 plate appearances during the 2012 season, he posted a .244/.312/.341 batting line with 16 doubles.
- The Giants agreed to sign Andres Torres to a one-year, $2MM contract. The 34-year-old switch hitter has a .241/.320/.388 batting line in eight career seasons at the MLB level.
- The Dodgers acquired Skip Schumaker from the Cardinals in exchange for minor league shortstop Jake Lemmerman. Schumaker posted a .276/.339/.368 slash line last season in 304 plate appearances.
- The Pirates signed free agent reliever Jason Grilli to a two-year, $6.75MM contract. He posted a 2.91 ERA with 13.8 K/9, 3.4 BB.9 and a 30.7% ground ball rate in 58 2/3 innings for Pittsburgh this past season.
- The Reds signed free agent outfielder Ryan Ludwick to a two-year, $15MM contract with a mutual option for 2015. The 34-year-old posted a .275/.346/.531 batting line with 26 home runs in 472 plate appearances for the Reds this past season.
- The Tigers agreed to a one-year contract with catcher Brayan Pena. Pena, who turns 31 next month, appeared in 68 games for the Royals in 2012, posting a .236/.262/.321 batting line in 226 plate appearances.
- Jeff Keppinger greatly improved his stock in 2012, going from a non-tender a year ago to signing a three-year, $12MM contract with the White Sox. Keppinger, 32, is a career .288/.337/.396 hitter, and is coming off an excellent season with the Rays in which he posted an .806 OPS in 418 plate appearances.
