Pat Burrell is moving from one World Series team, to the other. The Tampa Bay Rays have reportedly signed former Philadelphia Phillies power-hitting outfielder Pat Burrell to a two year deal worth $16 million.

Burrell, never known for his skills with a glove, will serve as an upgrade to the Rays output from their DH slot.

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The New York Yankees continued their offseason spending spree, signing AJ Burnett to a 5 year deal worth $82.5 million. The Yankees appear to be capitalizing on the down turn in the economy, going on a historic spending spree while the rest of the league has been cutting costs and keeping a sharp eye on their bottom line. Earlier this week the Yanks inked CC Sabathia to a 7 year, $161 million deal, the largest ever contract for a pitcher. The latest signing is pending a physical which is usually a formality, however, with the injury prone Burnett there are no guarantees.

If you thought committing a total of $243.5 million over the next 7 years would take the Yankees out of shopping mode, think again. The New York Post reports that they’ve now joined the bidding for first baseman Mark Teixeira, with Manny Ramirez as a backup option should they lose out on the switch hitting first baseman.

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The Cleveland Indians have reportedly agreed to terms on a two year deal with former Cubs closer, Kerry Wood. The deal is believed to be worth nearly $20 million and have a vesting option for a third should the oft-injured pitcher reach certain performance incentives.

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Now that the Phillies have declined to offer free agent Pat Burrell arbitration, several teams have picked up their pursuit of the slugger, including the Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Angels, and San Francisco Giants according to MLB.com’s Ken Mandel. Mandel also mentions that Burrell grew up in the Bay Area and implies that the Giants may be the favorites to land the outfielder.

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In the “no surprise here” department, Ken Rosenthal says that Brewers pitcher Ben Sheets is likely to turn down the Brew Crew’s offer of arbitration. Rosenthal mentions Carlos Silva and Gil Meche’s deals as possibly comparables to what Sheets will be offered but neither of those pitchers had the front of the rotation skill that Sheets possesses. While the tall righty has had a history of injuries, missing significant time in each of the last 4 seasons, he also has a career ERA of 3.73 and just over 1,200 strikeouts in 1,400 innings pitched.

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The San Francisco Giants have reportedly inked reliever Bob Howry to a one year deal worth $2.75 million. The 35 year old righty had put up 4 solid years of sub 3.4 ERA relief before last year’s 5.35 effort for the Chicago Cubs. I’m guessing Howry is hoping to re-establish himself and ink a multi-year deal next winter, and the Giants for their part could be getting a very good reliever at a bargain price if Howry can regain is previous form.

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Teams have until midnight eastern time tonight to extend offers of arbitration to their free agents and I’ll be updating this page as often as news becomes available about teams’ arbitration actions.

Update

The offers are all in, and according to the AP only 24 players were offered arbitration. The list is as follows:

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Free agent, and often injured, pitcher Mike Hampton is headed back to the Houston Astros with a one year deal worth at least $2 million according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN and Fox Sports out of Houston. The veteran left hander had his best year as an Astro back in ‘99 when he went 22-4 with an ERA under 3.

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The East Valley Tribune is reporting that the Arizona Diamondbacks have extended and offer to Ramon Vazquez to replace departing second baseman Orlando Hudson. Interestingly enough, Vazquez’s stats last year were nearly identical to Hudson’s however, Vazquez had career highs in several categories while Hudson had a statistically down year. If the Dbacks are [...]

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Orange County Register reporter, Randy Youngman, doesn’t think free agent slugger Mark Teixeira will be back with the Los Angeles Angels next year. He calls it a “gut feeling” and mentions that the people he talks to within the Angels organization don’t seem optimistic about the slugger’s return. Instead, Youngman predicts, Teixeira will sign with [...]

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