Jays avoid arbitration with OF Rios

The Toronto Blue Jays avoided salary arbitration by signing OF Alex Rios to a 1-year $4.835M contract on Tuesday.

Rios finished the 2007 season with career highs in HR's (24) and RBI's (85), finishing with a .297 batting average.

Blue Jays close to a deal with Lo Duca

According to Robert MacLeod of globesports.com, the Blue Jays are close to a 1-year deal for free agent catcher Paul Lo Duca. The deal is reportedly in the $3M - $4M range plus bonuses.

In the same article, the Jays are waiting for an answer from the Giants on an Alex Rios for Tim Lincecum deal the Jays proposed earlier in the day.