According to FoxSports, the two Bay area teams, the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland A's are the favorites in the Rafael Furcal sweepstakes. Furcal, a familiar fixture in California, having spent the last three years in Los Angeles with the Dodgers, is reportedly seeking a four year deal worth $40 million.
The Braves, Dodgers, Cubs, and Cardinals have all also been rumored to be interested in the star shortstop although each of those clubs has one or more hangups to overcome if they are to sign the free agent.
- The Braves would only need to land Furcal if they traded away their starter Escobar, presumably in a deal for ace pitcher Jake Peavy.
- The Dodgers would be interested in retaining the former All-Star but their focus has been on trying to resign the enigmatic fan-favorite, Manny Ramirez to a high dollar short term deal.
- The Cubs and Cardinals may still wind up making a push for Furcal although the Cubs may be hampered by their unsettled ownership issue,
- and the Cardinals seem to be focusing on former Redbird, Edgar Renteria as their main target at short.
