DARVISH DEAL WORTH THE WAIT
Just when it seemed spring training camps would open next week amid a paralyzed free-agent market that had Major League Baseball and its union on the verge of a labour war, the Chicago Cubs swooped in Saturday and signed right-hander Yu Darvish, arguably the top available starting pitcher, to a six-year, US$126-million contract. First baseman Eric Hosmer, who has yet to sign, is believed to have received multiple seven-year, nine-figure contracts this winter. With so many free agents still unsigned at this unprecedented late date, many of them plan on conducting their own training camp in Bradenton, Fla. One big signing, of course, does not prove anything and the industry will still be watching to see how the rest of this late-forming market unfolds. But with spring training approaching fast, there is at least some hope the Darvish signing will be the spark this market needed and labour tensions will ease.