Early verdicts on the biggest offseason moves

	Billy Wagner has been shaky at times, but he has helped the Mets take an early four-game lead in the NL East. Chuck Solomon/Sports Illustrated
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Baseball fans make so much of the offseason -- it's the only offseason in sports with its own capitalized title -- but we can't find out how the Hot Stove League turns out until the real games begin. And even then, it's open to interpretation.

So now, a little more than a quarter into the regular-season schedule, seems as good a time as any to mull over some of the free-agent signings and major trades of the offseason. Just to see how things have gone. So far.

Free-agent signings

Johnny Damon, Yankees: The Red Sox didn't want Damon, not at his price, so he took $52 million from the Evil Empire and has done about what you'd expect. He doesn't have as many homers as Cleveland leadoff man Grady Sizemore, and he's not as good at getting on base as Kevin Youkilis in Boston, and he doesn't have the batting average of Seattle's Ichiro Suzuki or the stolen bases of Scott Podsednik of the White Sox. But Damon is certainly competent. And he gives the big boppers in that Yankees lineup someone to drive in, which is just what the Yankees were after.
Bottom line: Costly, but it works.

A.J. Burnett, Blue Jays: What can you say? The Jays gambled on a long-term (five years), high-dollar ($55 million) deal with the former Florida flinger and he's given them two starts and 10 innings. Maybe he has four Cy Youngs in his future, which might make this deal worth it. Right now, though, Burnett and his ouchy elbow are about as useful as a pair of season tickets to see Les Expos. And a lot more expensive.
Bottom line: What, no warranty?

Rafael Furcal, Dodgers: Raffy is scoring some runs thanks to his lineup -- he's like Damon that way -- but his .337 on-base percentage is nothing to brag about, and he's looked, at times, like Bozo the Shortstop. He has 11 errors, most in the National League, giving him one of the worst fielding percentages in the game. Furcal, who tends to play on the streaky side, will heat up. But he has a lot of proving to do to justify that market-shaking, three-year, $39 million contract the Dodgers coughed up.
Bottom line: Too much for too little.

Billy Wagner, Mets: The player with the largest contract ever given to a reliever on an annual basis (four years, $43 million, or $10.75 million a year) has brought excitement and some controversy to the Big Apple. In other words, Wagner's paying off. He's blown three saves, but he's converted on 10 tries. He has more strikeouts than any regular NL closer, he still brings the 100-mph heat and he's made back-page headlines for everything from his choice of theme music to his opinions on his former team, the Phillies.
Bottom line: Money well spent.

B.J. Ryan, Blue Jays: Everybody freaked when Toronto GM J.P. Ricciardi gave Ryan, a heretofore largely unproven closer, the biggest contract ever for a reliever (five years, $47 million). We're not saying that Ryan is worth that much, but the Jays had no closers in the pipeline, and Ryan has done everything asked of him. He's reeled off 11 saves in 11 tries and given up only one run in 21 1/3 innings (a 0.42 ERA). The Jays are paying for the best. They're getting pretty close to it.
Bottom line: A practical bargain.

Kevin Millwood, Rangers: Millwood's the kind of guy, off the field, who can put a coffee shop full of latte-slugging nerds into a coma in one 30-second staredown. Mr. Excitement he's not. But he's made his starts, putting in about six innings every time out, and on the road he's been the same ERA god he was last year when he won the AL ERA title with Cleveland. Away from the park in Arlington, Millwood is worth every penny the Rangers are paying him (4-0, 2.31 ERA). But at home, where the Rangers really need him to pitch well, he's 2-3 with a 7.76 ERA. Is that worth $12 million a year for the next five years? Well, if you have to ask, you can't afford him.
Bottom line: At least he's no Chan Ho.

Jarrod Washburn, Mariners: The Mariners needed a proven starter, but most of the best wanted way too much money, so the M's ended up with Washburn (four years, $37.5 million), a workmanlike and stand-up lefty who has been ... well, workmanlike is about it. He's 3-5 with a 4.04 ERA. The record might be a little better, but he's getting some of the worst run support (3.9 runs an outing) in the AL.
Bottom line: Even mediocrity costs.

Nomar Garciaparra, Dodgers: GM Ned Colletti's one-year, $6 million signing of this onetime Boston icon could go down as the bargain of the year. Nomah has taken to L.A., and to first base, like a Sox fan to a bottle of Sam Adams. Garciaparra is hitting .375 with a plus-1.000 OPS and, defensively, he is surprisingly adept and getting better each day. He's the main reason the Dodgers are on a hot streak (seven straight, 15 of their last 18).
Bottom line: A steal so far.

Tom Gordon, Phillies: Flash wasn't the Phillies' first choice, but he ended up being a good one. The veteran right-hander has allowed just three runs in 18 2/3 innings (a 1.45 ERA) and he's blown one save in 15 tries. More than that, he brings professionalism and know-how learned from his time as Mariano Rivera's setup man with the Yankees. With Gordon, the Phillies are getting what Wagner's giving the Mets, and what Ryan's giving the Jays, at a fraction of the cost (three years, $18 million).
Bottom line: Good as gold, and cheaper.

Kenji Johjima, Mariners: The numbers at the plate are OK (.275, five homers, 25 RBIs) and the defense, despite all that preseason worrying over communication, appears fine. Johjima, the first Japanese catcher to play in the bigs, certainly is an upgrade for the Mariners. But at least one scout, talking to the Seattle Times, questioned Johjima's pitch-calling. And Johjima has been ineffective hitting on the road (.220). It's a work in progress in Seattle. At three years, $16.5 million, it's not a cheap one.
Bottom line: An expensive necessity.