BOSTON — After pleading poverty in front of Congress last week, baseball teams gathered Sunday to spend some more money on free agents at the winter meetings.

        Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi, Chan Ho Park and Juan Gonzalez headed the list of available players. While this year's class isn't expected to produce the free-agent frenzy of last year's gathering in Dallas, the late ending of the World Series shortened baseball's business season, which should make for a hectic four days before general managers go home Thursday.

        The New York Yankees and Mets didn't even wait for the meetings to get into a dealing mood, with the Yankees sending outfielder David Justice across town on Friday for third baseman Robin Ventura. And Oakland acquired closer Billy Koch from Toronto for a pair of minor leaguers.

        But all was quiet Sunday.

        “Nobody's looking to make a trade right now,” Mets general manager Steve Phillips said. “People want to talk to everybody to know what's out there.”

        There were just five trades last year and only one of significance, a six-man swap that sent Brad Ausmus, Doug Brocail and Nelson Cruz from Detroit to Houston for Roger Cedeno, Chris Holt and Mitch Meluskey.

        Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez got most of the attention, with Texas giving the shortstop a record $252 million, 10-year contract and the Red Sox giving Ramirez a $160 million, eight-year deal.

        In all, owners committed $739.2 million to 25 players.

        “This has to end sometime,” Philadelphia Phillies manager Larry Bowa said. “The well's got to run dry. It seems it does for a little bit, but then it starts back up.”

        Commissioner Bud Selig testified before the House Judiciary Committee last Thursday and said baseball was broke, blaming high salaries caused by free agency and salary arbitration.

        While owners have sung that chorus repeatedly since the reserve clause was struck down in December 1975, many keep spending in an effort to win.

        Scott Boras, who negotiated Rodriguez's deal last year, arrived Sunday to step up his peddling of Bonds. While Bonds hit a record 73 homers this year, he is 37, creating caution among teams faced with an expected asking price of $20 million or more annually for four or five years.

        San Francisco, the outfielder's team since 1993, made Bonds an offer last week, but no other club has publicly admitted interest in the outfielder.

        “We offered a home-team discount in spring training,” Boras said. “We offered them a four-year contract at a very favorable number.”

        Park, another Boras client, is the top available pitcher, and he's expected to go to the pitching-challenged Texas Rangers.

        Yankees' courting of Giambi goes on, with no indication of when the first baseman will decide whether to accept George Steinbrenner's money, probably $115 million to $120 million for seven years. New York also was trying to finalize a deal with left-hander Sterling Hitchcock, and was interested in free-agent outfielder Moises Alou and Florida outfielder Cliff Floyd.

        Gonzalez, offered arbitration by Cleveland on Friday, may have to wait until the market for Bonds develops in order to get the price he wants.

        Reliever Jason Isringhausen, who is close to a $27 million, four-year contract with the Cardinals, was expected to go to St. Louis on Monday for a physical that could lead to a finalized deal.

        Among cheaper talent, left-hander Ron Villone was close to signing with the Boston Red Sox.

        New Houston manager Jimy Williams was back in Boston, where he was fired in August despite keeping the banged-up Red Sox in contention. His replacement as the Boston manager, Joe Kerrigan, said pitcher Pedro Martinez and shortstop Nomar Garciaparra were progressing well in their recoveries.

        Kerrigan also said the Red Sox have approached former major league managers Whitey Herzog and Felipe Alou about serving as bench coaches. Both had been offered the job as Red Sox manager in the past.

        As for trade talk, Boras said Los Angeles outfielder Gary Sheffield wouldn't mind being dealt to Oakland. The Dodgers and Athletics held trade talks last week, even discussing a three-way deal with Toronto that never came to be.

        Sheffield's contract has a list of 12 teams he can block trades to.

        “Oakland is not on his block list, so he's obviously willing to play there,” Boras said.

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