Week In Review: 1/10/10 – 1/16/10

Here's your look back at the signings, trades, and other rumors of the past week:

• Things kicked off with a bang last Sunday, as the Reds made a surprising surge for Aroldis Chapman and signed the coveted lefty to a six-year, $30.25MM deal. While it's a lot of money for someone who's never thrown a pitch in the Majors and still needs development, I like the gamble for Cincinnati. As many have pointed out, the future of the Reds' rotation is impressive to say the least.
• One big trade this week, as the Athletics acquired Kevin Kouzmanoff from the Padres in a four-player deal. Kouzmanoff and minor leaguer Eric Sogard make their way to Oakland, with Scott Hairston being sent back to San Diego along with Aaron Cunningham. Kouzmanoff's a nice player, but a prospect like Cunningham is a steep price to pay. San Diego got a much nicer return than I'd have expected for Kouzmanoff.
• After all the talk about not wanting to guarantee Josh Johnson four years, the Marlins did just that, locking up their ace on a four-year extension. Johnson's contract will pay him $39MM, nearly the exact same deal signed by AL Cy Young winner Zack Greinke last offseason. This comes on the heels of some criticism from the MLB and MLBPA, though the Marlins had re-opened negotiations with Johnson prior to that news.
• Another of the NL's best young players signed a multi-year deal this week, when Matt Kemp signed a two-year, $11MM contract with the Dodgers, avoiding arbitration. Kemp's just one of several arbitration-eligible Dodgers, who are said to be discussing two-year deals for Andre Ethier, Jonathan Broxton, and James Loney.
• Shortly after declining a two-year, $17MM deal from San Francisco, Adam LaRoche signed a one-year deal worth just $6MM with the Diamondbacks. LaRoche has said he prefers Chase Field's dimensions to those of AT&T Park, which is understandable. However, he's going to find himself on a free agent market that includes several other productive first basemen next year. Even with a big year, the competition on the market could limit his payday. Arizona DFA'ed Eric Byrnes to make room for LaRoche.
• The Giants acted quickly after being turned down by LaRoche. San Francisco signed Aubrey Huff to a one-year deal worth $3MM. Given the team's other versatile options such as Pablo Sandoval and Mark DeRosa, it's tough to say that this move is a legitimate upgrade for the Giants. Still, it's a low-risk deal and if Huff can rediscover some of the magic he's shown with the Rays and O's in the past, the deal has the potential to be a great one.
• After several years of less-than-stellar closers in Detroit, the Tigers landed a big name for the ninth inning when they agreed to terms with Jose Valverde on a two-year, $14MM deal with a $9MM option for a third year. Detroit sacrifices its 19th overall pick in the draft next season. Houston will also receive a supplemental round pick for their loss, the 34th overall.
• The Pirates also added to their bullpen this week. They agreed to terms with both Brendan Donnelly and D.J. Carrasco, and are close to signing Octavio Dotel. Dotel will presumably fill the ninth-inning void in Pittsburgh. It was a busy week for the Buccos, who also added Ryan Church on a one-year, $1.5MM deal this week.
• The Rangers agreed to a two-year, $5MM contract with Colby Lewis this week. Lewis was flat-out dominant for the past two seasons in Japan; several teams had interest, but Lewis ended up back in Texas, where he was drafted.
• Perhaps the most talented pitcher left on the market, though also one of the riskiest, will throw for teams on Tuesday this week. Ben Sheets says that teams are "going to like what they see," and if he's healthy, then he's probably correct. The Rangers, Cubs, Cardinals, Dodgers, Brewers, and Mets will all be in attendance, in addition to some other unnamed teams.
• MLBTR keeps coming up with new ways to bring you all of the news and rumors about your favorite teams. This week, we introduced team-specific RSS and Twitter feeds, for those who would prefer not to sift through every last rumor for info on their favorite clubs.