UPDATE, 12-13-07 at 10:20am: Rosenthal confirms this signing; it kind of flew under the radar. Pretty cheap at $1.5MM per year.
UPDATE, 12-12-07 at 1:57pm: My Japanese-speaking friend says that this article indicates Fukumori signed with Texas for two years and $3MM. The $1.5MM salary is about twice what he made in ’07. Fukumori also had offers from the Pirates and Rays.
FROM 12-12-07 at 9:08am:
According to Evan Grant, the Rangers are "on the verge" of signing Japanese reliever Kazuo Fukumori. It would be a two-year deal.
As many as 10 teams were said to be interested in Fukumori, including the Yankees, Nationals, Royals, and Red Sox. Ken Davidoff recently spoke to a scout who described Fukumori as "not bad."
