Maybe the players union should subsidize the Rays.

Seriously.

Each of the Rays’ two postseason appearances prompted a spasm of spending by an AL East rival that missed the playoffs.

In 2008, the Yankees signed first baseman Mark Teixeira, left-hander CC Sabathia and righty A.J. Burnett for a combined $423.5 million.

In ’10, the Red Sox have reached agreements with first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and left fielder Carl Crawford on deals worth around $300 million.

The Rays, then, are the union’s best friend, forcing the Yankees and Red Sox to jump despite their low revenues and low payroll.

A shrewd front office helped the Rays reach the World Series in ’08 and win their second AL East title in three years in ’10.

Alas, the team is now coming apart, losing Crawford to the Red Sox and first baseman Carlos Pena to the Cubs, with closer Rafael Soriano and others to follow in free agency.

Time for the union to prop up the Rays, as unconventional a labor strategy as that might be.

No team drives the market quite like Tampa Bay.

- Ken Rosenthal

Before signing Carl Crawford, the Red Sox may have engaged in some good old-fashioned negotiating hijinks.

It would be just like the Sox to throw a monkey wrench into the Yankees’ attempt to sign Cliff Lee

And this little stunt, if it indeed happened, would have qualified.

The Sox are one team that made a seven-year offer to Lee, according to officials with another club.

But there was a catch.

The offer was for a lower dollar figure than Lee would accept, making it an offer Lee was certain to refuse.

Why would the Sox do such a thing?

Because with such an offer, they would empower Lee’s agents to say they had a seven-year bid, potentially forcing the Yankees to increase their six-year proposal.

The Yankees do not plan to go beyond six years for Lee, according to a source with knowledge of the club’s thinking.

The Red Sox often bid on free agents the Yankees want in order to drive up the price. The Yankees often do the same thing in reverse. In fact, that was at least part of their motivation in entering the fray for Crawford.

-Ken Rosenthal

How close was free-agent first baseman Paul Konerko to signing with the Diamondbacks?

Closer than you might think.

Both Konerko’s agent, Craig Landis, and White Sox officials say the turning point in the negotiations occurred Tuesday night when the team agreed to guarantee Konerko a third year.

Before that, the White Sox had been offering two years and a club option. The Diamondbacks’ first offer was three years, $30 million.

Konerko planned to visit the Diamondbacks next week to escalate negotiations if the White Sox didn't improve their proposal, according to a source with knowledge of the discussions.

“He was very tempted,” Landis said. “(The D-Backs) clearly were his second choice. We had already made up our mind that if things broke down with the White Sox, the next thing we were going to do was get more serious and engage the Diamondbacks to accomplish a three-year deal for Paul in Arizona.”

The White Sox ultimately signed Konerko to a three-year, $37.5 million contract with heavy deferrals in the third year. He'll earn $12 million in both 2011 and ’12, $6.5 million in ’13 and $1 million per year from ’14 to ’20.

The Rangers were Konerko’s third choice – no offer was made, but the two sides discussed the parameters of a deal, Landis said. The Orioles showed interest, but were never a serious contender.

-Ken Rosenthal

On the final day of the regular season, the middle of the Padres lineup looked like this: Miguel Tejada, Adrian Gonzalez, Ryan Ludwick.

Since then ...

Tejada signed with the San Francisco Giants as a free agent.

Gonzalez was dealt to the Boston Red Sox earlier this week.

And now Ludwick is generating trade interest, major league sources said Tuesday night.

The Red Sox, Detroit Tigers, Baltimore Orioles and Los Angeles Dodgers are among the teams to check in, according to sources.

Given all the attention placed on the Gonzalez trade, it would probably be awkward for the Red Sox and Padres to do another deal for a San Diego hitter this quickly.

So far, the Padres appear reluctant to move Ludwick, but the current climate portends an active trade market for right-handed-hitting outfielders. Jayson Werth signed an enormous contract, which could raise the market price for other free agents, such as Magglio Ordonez. Trade targets, therefore, could be the more cost-effective route for needy teams.

Ludwick, 32, is scheduled to become a free agent after the 2011 season. He batted .251 with 17 home runs and 69 RBI in 136 games for the Padres and Cardinals this year.

-Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal

It is entirely plausible that the Angels could sign one or more of the top remaining free agents — left-hander Cliff Lee, outfielder Carl Crawford, third baseman Adrian Beltre and closer Rafael Soriano.

The team finally expressed interest in Lee on Tuesday, major league sources said. Signing him could make sense, and not simply to keep him away from the Rangers, the Angels’ biggest rival in the AL West.

True, the Angels already have nearly $50 million committed to five starting pitchers — right-handers Dan Haren, Jered Weaver, Joel Pineiro, Ervin Santana and lefty Scott Kazmir.

However, the clock is ticking on Weaver, who's eligible for arbitration twice more before becoming a free agent. He'll receive a significant raise from his $4.265 million salary this offseason, and another bump next winter.

And that might be it for his Angels career.

Weaver’s agent, Scott Boras, generally prefers clients to establish their values on the open market rather than sign contract extensions prior to free agency.

The Angels could sign Lee, then trade Weaver for premium offensive help and emerge in a stronger position with their rotation, at least in terms of long-term control.

The righty Santana, signed through 2012 with a club option for ’13, is another possible trade candidate. The Angels could clear $20 million by trading him.

-Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi

If the Texas Rangers are serious about trading Michael Young, the Colorado Rockies are interested.

The Rockies and Rangers have been in contact about the possibility of a deal involving Young, according to major league sources. If a deal were made, the Rockies would move Young back to second base.

Texas is believed to be checking with numerous teams to see what kind of interest Young would generate on the trade market, and the Rangers have indicated that they'd assume a portion of the $48 million Young's guaranteed over the next three years.

The Rockies and Rangers have had only initial contact on the matter. They haven't discussed players the Rockies would give up, nor have they dealt with how much of the remaining money on Young's contract the Rangers would pick up.

Young does have the right to specify only eight teams to which he can be traded, and it's not known whether the Rockies are among the eight teams.

-Tracy Ringolsby

Gary Sheffield traveled to the winter meetings on Tuesday from his home in nearby Tampa, Fla. As usual, the 500-homer man had some interesting things to say.

For one thing, the 42-year-old wasn’t ready to declare that he'd retired from playing, despite sitting out the 2010 season. But it doesn’t sound like he’s actively seeking offers.

“Never say never,” he said.

At the moment, Sheffield is working as an adviser on baseball and financial matters. He's started Sheffield Management Company, with former teammate (and free-agent reliever) Jason Grilli as a client.

Grilli missed this season after sustaining a severe knee injury in spring training, but Sheffield said Grilli’s fastball velocity is already back to 95 mph. (Scott Boras, formerly hired and fired as Sheffield’s agent, could not have done the sales pitch any better.)

Sheffield earned $168 million during his 22 major league seasons, according to Baseball-Reference.com. So, we know he is well-versed in two areas – making money and judging pitchers.

-Jon Paul Morosi

What the heck is going on with the Washington Nationals?

On Sunday, the Nats incensed rival clubs by signing free-agent outfielder Jayson Werth to a seven-year, $126 million contract.

Now the buzz at the winter meetings is that the Nats could offer free-agent left-hander Cliff Lee a seven-year deal for even greater dollars.

The Washington Post quoted a club source saying such a proposal is “not happening,” refuting a report by the New York Daily News.

Maybe not, but that didn't stop one exec from telling Jon Paul Morosi the Nationals are "on everybody," including Lee. They are trying to make a statement.

No team would ever admit to planning such an offer, but such a proposal is at least conceivable from the Nats, given the immense wealth of their owner, Ted Lerner.

Before the Werth signing, the Nats actually drew criticism from their fans for their lack of spending.

But Lerner, 85, could be turning into the next Tom Hicks or Mike Ilitch — an owner who suddenly decides, “Dammit, I want to win!”

Even if the Nats aren't serious about Lee, they're one of the teams pursuing the next-best starter on the free-agent market, right-hander Carl Pavano. A three-year, $30 million commitment might be necessary to get Pavano done.

One thing is certain: The Nationals want to be ready to contend by 2012, when prized right-hander Stephen Strasburg will be recovered from Tommy John surgery and prized outfielder Bryce Harper could be ready for the majors.

How the Nats get there remains to be seen.

-Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi

Colorado Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd spent the better part of last season trying to acquire versatile Ty Wigginton, but he never could satisfy the trade desires of the Baltimore Orioles.

With Wigginton a free agent this offseason, O'Dowd finally got his man.

The Rockies agreed on a contract with Wigginton in the early hours on Tuesday.

The deal's guaranteed for two years, $7.5 million, including a $500,000 buyout for 2013.

The Rockies don't have the everyday job Wigginton was hoping to find, but he has the type of versatility that could lead to plenty of playing time for a right-handed hitter on a team filled with left-handed bats.

The Rockies' projected starters include left-handed hitters at first base (Todd Helton), third base (Ian Stewart), left field (Carlos Gonzalez) and right field (Seth Smith).

In recent years, Wigginton's primarily played first and third base, but he's also seen time in the outfield and at second base. He'll be the second right-handed-hitting outfield option for the Rockies, behind Ryan Spilborghs, but the No. 1 option behind Helton and Stewart at first and third.

The Rockies will continue to look for a backup catcher, with Bengie Molina and Ronny Paulino both candidates, and bullpen help. Jesse Crain, who grew up in Boulder, Colo., remains high on the Rockies' list of free-agent pitchers.

Wigginton's hit more than 20 home runs in four of his past five seasons.

-Tracy Ringolsby

At this time last year, Rich Harden was one of the most talked about free-agent starting pitchers.

One poor season later – a 5.58 ERA in fewer than 100 innings with Texas – and it’s not clear whether Harden’s future is in the rotation or bullpen. But at least he has the free-agent market to help him figure that out.

Harden’s representatives are gauging interest from a number of teams. Some like him as a starter. Some like him as a reliever.

The New York Yankees, Minnesota Twins, Tampa Bay Rays, Arizona Diamondbacks, Milwaukee Brewers, Seattle Mariners and Colorado Rockies are among the teams who have checked in, a source said.

Questions about Harden’s durability are a major reason why the bullpen is becoming a more viable option. Despite a career 3.63 ERA, the right-hander's never thrown 200 innings in a season.

Still, he is only 29 years old and has power stuff. Someone will take a chance on him.

-Jon Paul Morosi