Orlando Cabrera

[Toy Cannon]

The A's reportedly signed free agent SS Orlando Cabrera to a 1 year, $4 million contract.

[Hobosox]

Good signing for them, replaces Bobby Crosby at short.

Also, A's are reportedly close to signing Nomar, which would push Crosby back to a Utility role. Nomar basically says his options are Oakland or retirement, so for his sake, I hope he gets a deal done.

A's won't be so bad this year. Not great, but not awful either

[Hobosox]

Nomar did agree today, to a 1-year deal, according to the San Fran Chronicle


so the two players traded for each other to kick-start the End of the Curse are now playing infield together in Oakland. If you told me that's where they'd be 5-years after The Season, I'd have laughed in your face. Shows what I know.

[Hobosox]

Cabrera, Nomar to report on Thursday

By Mychael Urban / MLB.com

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?...=.jsp&c_id=mlb

PHOENIX -- You hear big league managers say it every year: A quiet camp is a good camp.

Spring Training 2009 has been anything but quiet for the A's, however, and they're likely to make quite a bit more noise Thursday.

Off the field, veteran infielders Orlando Cabrera and Nomar Garciaparra are expected to be introduced as the newest members of the team as Oakland formally announces what's been widely reported for days.

On the field, the A's will have their first split-squad day of the spring, with one group traveling to nearby Scottsdale, Ariz., to take on the rival Giants while another group hosts South Africa's entry in the World Baseball Classic.

Mark Ellis, who made his Cactus League debut Wednesday when he took over at designated hitter and struck out in the fifth inning against the White Sox, will get his first spring start at DH against South Africa, and Daric Barton might get his first start at first base.

There's also a slight chance that third baseman Eric Chavez will man the hot corner -- for the first time since Aug. 13 shoulder surgery -- in one of the games.

Both free agents, Cabrera and Garciaparra have agreed to one-year contracts, with Cabrera reportedly making $4 million, and Garciaparra to be paid between $1.5-$2 million. The Garciaparra deal initially was expected to be announced Friday, but the final details were hammered out quickly and the A's already have a signed contract with Garciaparra in hand.

Ellis, who had his right shoulder surgically repaired about a month after Chavez, has been taking batting practice with the team since the start of camp and was medically cleared to DH in a game before the Cactus League season opened.

Ellis won't be allowed to play defense in a game until late March. A's manager Bob Geren said a decision on the defensive-debut date of Chavez, who started at DH on Wednesday, likely wouldn't be made until Thursday morning.

Chavez on Sunday said he expected to play by Friday at the latest. Barton, who had offseason hip surgery, played defense for the first time Wednesday when he took over for starting first baseman Chris Clark in the sixth inning.