BASEBALL Houston acquires Jeff Kent

The Astros gave free-agent Jeff Kent an $18.2 million, two-year contract.
NEW YORK (AP) -- Jeff Kent gave Houston its biggest free-agent signing in years. The New York Yankees, meanwhile, neared an agreement with Japanese baseball's biggest star of recent years, Hideki Matsui.
As a busy week in baseball pushed ahead, Greg Maddux still wasn't hinting whether he would accept Atlanta's offer of salary arbitration. He was among 18 players facing a midnight deadline for their decisions.
Montreal's talks to trade pitcher Bartolo Colon to the New York Yankees or Boston appeared to be at a standstill. And Cuban right-hander Jose Contreras changed the makeup of the market when he finally was declared a free agent.
Biggest deal of day
Kent's $18.2 million, two-year contract with Houston was the biggest deal of the day. Boston gave Mike Timlin a $1.85 million, one-year contract to join its bullpen, and Damian Jackson a $625,000, one-year deal to back up its starting infielders. Texas gave Doug Glanville $1 million and the chance to become a starter in the outfield.
The Yankees finalized their $1.5 million, one-year deal with backup infielder Todd Zeile, and St. Louis agreed to minor league contracts with right-hander Cal Eldred and left-hander Lance Painter. Cleveland agreed to minor league contracts with right-hander Mike Thurman, catcher Tim Laker and infielder Casey Blake.
Kent's deal with the Astros was a surprise. He had been offered arbitration by San Francisco, but decided to leave the Giants, partly because of Dusty Baker's decision to leave to become manager of the Chicago Cubs.
"This was not in our plan, was not in our budget and was not on our radar screen," Astros general manager Gerry Hunsicker said. "I would dare say, after Nolan Ryan, this is the most significant free-agent acquisition that this franchise has ever acquired."
Helped Giants to Pennant
Kent, 34, won the MVP award two years ago and hit .313 last season with 37 homers and 108 RBIs, helping San Francisco win its first NL pennant since 1989. His arrival means four-time Gold Glove second baseman Craig Biggio must move to the outfield.
Kent will combine with Lance Berkman, Jeff Bagwell and Biggio to give the Astros a formidable middle of the lineup.
The Yankees, who had opened talks with free agent Cliff Floyd in an effort to gain bargaining power, made progress in talks Wednesday with Matsui's agent, Arn Tellem, and neared agreement on a three-year deal worth about $21 million, according to a lawyer familiar with the negotiations who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The sides agreed on the basic structure of Matsui's salaries over the three years, the lawyer said, but had not agreed on possible performance bonuses or whether to include an option for a fourth season.
Corner outfielder
Matsui, a three-time MVP of Japan's Central League for the Yomiuri Giants, would be a corner outfielder for the Yankees.
Maddux, a four-time Cy Young Award winner, must make his decision following the Braves' acquisitions of Mike Hampton and Russ Ortiz in trades and signing of free agent Paul Byrd. If he accepts arbitration, he could break the record one-year contract of $12 million set by David Cone in 2000.
Contreras, who defected from Cuba in October, was contacted by the Yankees immediately after he was declared a free agent by the commissioner's office. The right-hander, considered a top pitcher by scouts, established residency last week in Nicaragua, which means he isn't subject to the baseball draft.
"My desire is to play baseball," Contreras said Wednesday. "I would play for any team, and I am going to give my all to not let them down."
The Yankees put their talks with Montreal for Colon off to the side. Montreal asked for pitcher Orlando Hernandez, first baseman Nick Johnson, outfielder Juan Rivera and several million dollars to pay Hernandez's salary. The Yankees refused to even make a counteroffer.