Braves GM blasts Furcal's agents

Braves president John Schuerholz has vowed to never again do business with Rafael Furcal's agents, whom Schuerholz accused in a newspaper interview of conducting "despicable" dealings with the team.

Schuerholz and Braves general manager Frank Wren were quoted in yesterday's Atlanta Journal-Constitution as saying the Wasserman Media Group negotiated dishonestly by taking the team's signed terms of agreement sheet for Furcal to the Los Angeles Dodgers, who then reached an agreement Wednesday to re-sign the shortstop. Wren has said he believed the request by agent Paul Kinzer for a term sheet signed by the Braves meant an agreement had been reached. Furcal and the Dodgers finalized their deal yesterday.

Schuerholz said he would never make an offer for any other player represented by the agency, which includes Kinzer and agents Arn Tellem, Adam Katz, and Joel Wolfe.

"Having been in this business for 40-some years, I've never seen anybody treated like that," Schuerholz told the newspaper. "The Atlanta Braves will no longer do business with that company - ever. I told Arn Tellem that we can't trust them to be honest and forthright. I told him that in all my years, I've never seen any [agency] act in such a despicable manner."

The players' association is likely to maintain that a team cannot boycott players based on which agent they retain.

"I intend to be in touch next week with the commissioner's office to make sure the Braves are made aware of their obligations under the Basic Agreement," said Michael Weiner, the general counsel for the players' association.

Relief pitcher Peter Moylan is the only Braves player currently represented by the Wasserman Media Group.

CC Sabathia will receive $9.5 million from the New York Yankees before he throws his first official pitch in pinstripes.

His $161 million, seven-year contract includes a $9 million signing bonus, according to details obtained by the Associated Press. By the time the Yankees open at Baltimore April 6, he already will have received $6 million of that bonus plus $3.5 million of next year's salary.

This is how it works: The signing bonus is payable in three equal installments on Dec. 31, March 1, and July 31. While most players are paid semimonthly during the six months of the regular season, Sabathia's salary will be paid in semimonthly installments over 12 months of the year. That means he will have received six payments of $583,333 before the opener.

Outfielder Juan Rivera decided to stay with the Los Angeles Angels, agreeing to a $12.75 million, three-year contract. The 30-year-old outfielder hit .246 with 12 homers and 45 RBIs in 89 games for the Angels last season . . . Greg Norton and the Braves agreed to an $800,000, one-year contract, a deal that keeps the pinch-hit specialist in Atlanta . . . The Florida Marlins and pitcher Josh Johnson have agreed to a one-year, $1.4 million contract. Johnson, 23, returned from elbow surgery in July to post a 7-1 record and a 3.61 ERA . . . Nick Willhite, a hard-throwing lefthander for the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1960s, died at his home in Alpine, Utah, after a battle with cancer. He was 67.