Sixteen Players to Become New-Look Free Agents, Fehr Says

Sixteen players will be made so-called new-look free agents for a six-to eight-week period that probably will begin in January, Players union executive Donald Fehr said Sunday.

Baseball owners have agreed to settle the collusion cases with a payment to the players’ association that will total $280 million Jan. 2, several agents and lawyers familiar with the agreement have said. As part of the deal, the 16 players will be given the chance to leave their teams and become free agents again.

The players are the Angels’ Chili Davis, San Diego’s Jack Clark, Detroit’s Jack Morris, Atlanta’s Charlie Leibrandt, Boston’s Larry Andersen, Detroit’s Mike Heath, Houston’s Danny Darwin and Dave Smith, Minnesota’s Juan Berenguer and Gary Gaetti, Montreal’s Dennis Martinez, the New York Yankees’ Dave LaPoint and Mike Witt, Oakland’s Dave Henderson and San Francisco’s Brett Butler and Mike LaCoss.

Fehr, in Tokyo for baseball’s goodwill tour, confirmed the broad outline of the agreement, but declined to get into details.

A source involved in the deal confirmed that the sides settled on the $280-million figure and the new-look free agency in a handshake agreement Oct. 26.

The source, who declined to be identified, said that all other details of the agreement will have to be worked out before it can be presented for ratification.

Clark said Sunday night that he still wants to return to the Padres, apologizing for his previous comments ridiculing the organization.

The Padres previously offered Clark a one-year contract for $2.5 million with an option year at $2.5 million. Clark angrily rejected the offer, chastising the organization for making it.