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Furcal picks Dodgers over Braves

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Ken Rosenthal

Ken Rosenthal has been the senior baseball writer for FOXSports.com since August 2005. He appears weekly on MLB on FOX. Follow him on Twitter.

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Updated Dec 19, 2008 4:59 PM ET
     
 
Rafael Furcal has finally made up his mind. He's going back to Hollywood.
Furcal, the top free-agent shortstop on the open market, has decided to sign with the Dodgers, major-league sources said. His deal, which will become official after he passes a physical, is for three years and $30 million, according to one source with knowledge of the details. Agent Arn Tellem, one of Furcal's representatives, confirmed the deal in a statement on Thursday. Furcal will receive $6.5 million next season, $8.5 million in 2010 and $12 million in 2011. His contract includes a $12 million vesting option for a fourth season, which Furcal will receive if he makes 600 plate appearances in year three, as well as a $3 million bonus whenever the deal ends. On Monday night, the Braves were under the distinct impression that they had a deal with Furcal. On Tuesday, the Dodgers re-entered the discussions, and by Wednesday afternoon the Dodgers and Furcal were hammering out the terms of an agreement, sources said. The Braves on Wednesday were informed that Furcal would not accept their deal. "When people deal with you in this manner, they lose credibility," Braves GM Frank Wren said. "You don't forget these things." According to Wren, this is how the situation played out:
  • Wren reached agreement on the terms of a contract with Furcal's agent, Paul Kinzer, on Monday night, pending the approval of Furcal. (Kinzer works for an agent group headed by Tellem.)
  • Between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. ET Monday, Wren spoke with Kinzer three or four times, negotiating the dollar amount, the years and terms of the vesting option, and other contractual details.
  • Wren and Kinzer spoke again around midnight Monday. Kinzer told Wren that he had not yet heard back from Furcal, but that Furcal was excited and that "we're good."
  • On Tuesday morning, Wren woke up to a voicemail from Kinzer telling him to put a term sheet (the standard baseball term for an official contract offer) together.
  • Wren went into his office in Atlanta, put the term sheet together and signed it.
  • Shortly thereafter, Kinzer began "backpedaling," saying he promised the Dodgers he would talk to them.
Atlanta, according to sources, offered Furcal a three-year deal worth approximately $30 million, and included a vesting option for a fourth year that would have pushed the potential value of the deal to approximately $40 million. The Dodgers, meanwhile, had been reluctant to re-sign Furcal long-term because of medical concerns. On Tuesday, however, they suddenly showed interest in extending their offer beyond two guaranteed years. Tellem rejected the idea that Furcal had reneged on a deal with the Braves. "There was never an agreement reached between Rafael Furcal and the Atlanta Braves," Tellem said. "In fact, the Braves were fully aware that Furcal was not prepared to make a decision but had requested an opportunity to sleep on it before deciding. "Furcal ultimately decided to accept the Dodgers' offer, taking into consideration a number of factors, the most important of which was his desire to continue playing shortstop and not make the position change to second base that the Braves were requiring," Tellem also said. Tellem said he understands the Braves' frustration with the outcome of the negotiations, but that Furcal's representatives "conducted ourselves with dignity and complied with all the rules of Major League Baseball throughout this process." Tellem said there wasn't a deal with the Braves because there was not an agreement signed by both sides and the players' association and MLB had not confirmed the deal. The A's are believed to have made the high offer for Furcal — four years guaranteed in the $40 million range, according to major-league sources. Furcal, 31, left the Braves for the Dodgers after the 2005 season, signing a three-year, $39 million free-agent contract. For the Braves, the loss of Furcal represents their third major setback of the offseason. The first came when they failed to reach a trade agreement for Padres right-hander Jake Peavy after weeks of negotiations. The second occurred when they were outbid for free-agent right-hander A.J. Burnett, who signed a five-year, $82.5 million contract with the Yankees. Furcal was less important to the Braves than either of those starting pitchers, but his addition would have created opportunities for the team to trade shortstop Yunel Escobar or second baseman Kelly Johnson for either outfield help or pitching. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Tagged: Dodgers, Rafael Furcal

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