Owners open wallets to wacky contracts: when a team commits $45 million to a third baseman, it usually wants to know if he can throw across the infield

For three straight offseasons, baseball's free-agent market was mostly depressed, with agents grumbling that they were the victims of "legal collusion." Well, the agents are back to giggling. True to form, the clubs could restrain themselves for only so long.

Commissioner Bud Selig need not panic--the spending orgy of the 2000-01 offseason might never be repeated, and teams are mostly exercising better judgment. But the game's increased revenues, combined with the clubs' pent-up energy, has led to a fresh set of wacky contracts, starting the cycle anew.

* RHP Kris Benson, three years, $22.5 million, Mets. This was the contract that started all the trouble, inflating the price for every middle-of-the-rotation free-agent righthander who followed. The Mets never should have traded for Benson in the first place. By re-signing him, genera] manager Omar Minaya compounded the previous regime's mistake.

Benson, 30, is a career underachiever who lacks the makeup and durability to succeed in New York. And the Mets will continue to be haunted by their decision to include pitching prospects Matt Peterson and Scott Kazmir in separate July deals for Benson and righthander Victor Zambrano.

Had the Mets kept Peterson and Kazmir, the team could have put together a strong package for A's righthander Tim Hudson. Instead, the Mets will pay Benson $7 million in 2005 while Hudson will make $6.75 million. And Kazmir, a gifted 20-year-old lefthander, could become a star for the Devil Rays.

* 3B Troy Glaus, four years, $45 million, Diamondbacks. Quite the lavish signing for a team that supposedly is in financial distress. New general partner Ken Kendrick boasts that his ownership group has $250 million in capital. I won't say the D-backs are insolvent. I won't say they're insane. I'll just say they're somewhere in between.

When a team commits $45 million to a third baseman, it usually wants to know if he can throw across the infield. The Diamondbacks don't have that assurance with Glaus, who has appeared in 149 games total the past two seasons. Glaus, 28, underwent shoulder surgery in May, then returned as a designated hitter for the Angels in September. He won't have the DH spot to fall back on in the N.L.

The D-backs did exhaustive medical checks on Glaus, evidently determining that he was a better risk than first baseman Richie Sexson, who also is coming off shoulder surgery. If healthy, Glaus might hit 50 homers at Bank One Ballpark. But if he plays third, he will displace Chad Tracy, the Diamondbacks' best young player. Moving Tracy to first would displace Shea Hillenbrand. Another possibility for Tracy is the outfield.

The Diamondbacks have greater needs at shortstop and center field. Given their willingness to overpay, they would have been better off trying to sign free-agent shortstop Nomar Garciaparra and trade for Braves center fielder Andruw Jones.

* RHP Russ Ortiz, four years, $33 million, Diamondbacks. Asked his choice for the worst signing, one executive blurted out Ortiz's name before I could even finish the question.

Among free-agent pitchers, only Pedro Martinez has a more impressive track record than Ortiz, who churns out innings and quality starts. But Ortiz's late-season fade in 2004 was troublesome. And scouts and executives have long expressed concern about Ortiz's walks and high pitch counts.

Ortiz, 30, has posted high win totals in part because of the quality of his teams in San Francisco and Atlanta--and the pitcher-friendly tendencies of his home parks. All that will change in Arizona. Bank

One is a hitter's paradise. No longer will Ortiz benefit from the Braves' Jones playing behind him in center. And the Diamondbacks, coming off a 111-loss season, need about six more free agents to contend.

* SS Cristian Guzman, four years, $16.8 million, Nationals. Guzman, 26, will outlast President Bush in Washington if he completes his contract with the Nationals--a frightening thought, considering his career on-base percentage is only .303.

Nationals interim G.M. Jim Bowden loves Guzman's age and defense, plus the fact he was the shortstop on three division championship clubs with the Twins. It's possible Guzman still has offensive upside. There's just no evidence to suggest it.

Guzman lacks power and is not the threat to steal bases that he was earlier in his career. The Twins, who rarely make mistakes, didn't hesitate to decline his $5.25 million option.

* RHPs Jan Lieber, three years, $21 million, and Cory Lidle, two years, $6.3 million, Phillies. Though somewhat excessive, these signings actually make sense, given the Phillies' need for ground-ball pitchers at hitter-friendly Citizens Bank Park. The complaint here is that the Phillies failed to think big, settling for two more middle-of-the-rotation types when they perhaps could have landed Hudson.

The A's liked both Phillies righthander Ryan Madson and second baseman Chase Utley, but Phillies G.M. Ed Wade again was reluctant to trade young talent. Consider it a blown opportunity.