Cano becomes Seattle's toast of the coast

The Seattle Mariners shook up baseball's free-agent market on Friday, reaching a rich deal with Robinson Cano at the same time Carlos Beltran, Curtis Granderson and other familiar names found new homes.

Meanwhile, Scott Feldman has a new home, while Boston slugger Mike Napoli and New York Yankees pitcher Hiroki Kuroda decided to stay put.

The Yankees kept up their dizzying offseason makeover, with All-Stars coming and going - Beltran joined them, Granderson left.

The Mariners made the kind of splash they've wanted for nearly a decade. They reached agreement with Cano on a contract that ESPN reported is worth $240 million over 10 years.

Music mogul Jay-Z, whose Roc Nation has partnered with CAA Baseball to represent Cano, was in Seattle for talks that began on Thursday. Agent Brodie Van Wagenen of CAA Baseball and Juan Perez of Roc Nation Sports also were in attendance.

The 31-year-old Cano had spent his entire career with the Yankees and was a five-time All-Star. He hit .314 with 27 homers and 107 RBIs last season.

The Yankees had offered $175 million over seven years.

Cano goes from a team that has missed the playoffs only twice in 19 years to a club that hasn't been in the postseason since 2001.

"He was a great Yankee. He was a great player. I think everybody tried hard to get the deal done," said Yankees managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner.

"We just never got close enough obviously. We wish him the best. We hope he has a long, healthy career."

After recently adding outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury and catcher Brian McCann, the Yankees kept spending.

They reached a deal with Beltran for three years and $45 million. The agreement was first reported by the New York Daily News.

The 36-year-old Beltran is an eight-time All-Star and one of the game's best postseason players. He hit .296 with 24 homers and 84 RBIs for St. Louis this year, adding two homers and 15 RBIs in October while making his first World Series appearance.

Granderson is moving across town to join the Mets. The outfielder agreed to a four-year contract worth $60 million.

The three-time All-Star, who turns 33 in spring training, hit .229 with seven homers and 15 RBIs last season, when wrist and hand injuries limited him to 61 games.

He topped 40 homers in each of the previous two seasons.

Feldman got a three-year deal with Houston, with the 111-loss Astros hoping he can lend leadership to a young rotation.

The veteran starter, who turns 31 early next year, was 12-12 with a 3.86 ERA in 30 games for the Chicago Cubs and Baltimore last season.

"Everybody starts in this game young. You can really learn a lot just by watching anybody. ... I can learn from them and they can also learn from me," Feldman said.

"It's just going to be great to have a group of guys that works well and we can all get on the same page, help each other out and have a successful season."

Meanwhile, Napoli tweeted: "The beard is coming back to Boston!!! Couldn't be happier!!"

The first baseman with the bushy beard reached agreement with the World Series champions on a two-year contract for $32 million.

The 32-year-old Napoli hit .259 with 23 home runs and 92 RBIs in his first season with the Red Sox.

Kuroda's return fills one of three holes in the Yankees' rotation behind CC Sabathia and Ivan Nova.

The right-hander, who turns 39 in February, got off to a strong start last season before fading down the stretch. He finished 11-13 with a 3.31 ERA in 32 starts covering 201 1-3 innings.

Several reports indicated the deal was for one year at about $16 million.

(China Daily 12/08/2013 page11)