AGRI Biz

A few weeks ago, ESPN’s Peter Gammons said Jason Bay would “rather play in Beirut than in New York.” Evidently, he was wrong. Bay signed on with his lone aggressive suitor, the New York Mets, inking a four-year deal worth $66 million with a vesting option that could bring the earnings over $80 million. The Boston Red Sox “remained in touch with Bay to the end,” according to ...

The Boston Red Sox signed Mike Cameron earlier this offseason to play left field, Jason Bay Æs old position. The team has Jacoby Ellsbury anchoring center field, J.D. Drew holding down the fort in right field, and Jeremy Hermida riding the bench as the fourth outfielder . But, though the Sox have four capable outfielders, they are still monitoring BayÆs situation. As it stands now, his situation is not a good one. ...

The Seattle Mariners, having already signed third baseman Chone Figgins and acquired starting pitcher Cliff Lee this offseason, took a huge gamble, trading the horrid Carlos Silva to the Cubs for the dysfunctional Milton Bradley. They hope they don't get this version. Milton Bradley has had his problems. He tore his ACL aggressively arguing with umpire Mike Winters as a member of the San Diego Padres in September 2007, ...

The Red Sox signed Jason Bay's replacement. Matt Holliday? No. Mike Cameron? Perplexedly, yes. After signing the best starting pitcher on the free-agent market, John Lackey , for five years and $80 million-plus, the Boston Red Sox made a puzzling move. They engaged in ôserious talksö with free-agent outfielder Mike Cameron , and signed the 36-year old hours later to a two-year deal worth $15 million. In ...

Early this Monday morning, a report circled that the best free-agent starter available on the market, John Lackey , was in Boston taking a physical, a precursor to a signing with the Red Sox. AOL FanhouseÆs Ed Price first reported the news, and then other media outlets, including Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports , echoed the report. In an interview, ESPNÆs Jayson Stark chuckled, ôIt is very rare ...

The Texas Rangers missed out on the playoffs this past season, but they improved drastically. They finished a distant second place to the Anaheim Angels in the American League West, yet had an eight-win improvement over their 2008 campaign. Their offense hit 224 home runs, a stellar amount, but their success lied in the pitching staff. Prior to last season, their pitching had been awful for many years. 2008 was particularly ...

The Yankees hope Granderson can do more than just field, steal bases, and hit homers in New York. The New York Yankees won the World Series this past season with the best offense in baseball. They hit .283 as a team, socked 244 home runs, and had an incredible .362 on-base percentage. Seven of their regulars hit 20 or more home runs. Derek Jeter, their captain who was in ...

The Boston Red Sox traded one of their top prospects, shortstop Hanley Ramirez , to the Florida Marlins during the 2005 offseason. In the deal, Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell came to Beantown, and both produced for the Red Sox. They helped bring the franchise a championship in 2007. But Ramirez also flourished with the Marlins. He won the National League Rookie of the Year award in 2006 by hitting 17 homers, 46 doubles, ...

Adrian Beltre isn't going to hit 48 homers like he did in 2004. He isn't going to drive in 120 runs, either. But he would give the Twins 20-30 homers and stellar defense at third base. There are four sure-fire stars on the free-agent market–Matt Holliday , Jason Bay , John Lackey , and Chone Figgins , but there are countless others that, though classified as B-list free-agents, are capable ...

This offseason, there are very few star free agents on the market. Still, there is a lot of intrigue, and a lot of players looking to make an impact on a contending team. Here now are my predictions for where the top five free agents will land in what should be another busy offseason in baseball. á 1. Matt Holliday The New York Mets arenÆt getting any younger and need to make a statement ...