Giants sign Affeldt

Reds lose Affeldt to Giants

The Reds efforts to retain three free agent veterans from their bullpen took another hit on Monday as left-hander Jeremy Affeldt signed a two-year, $8 million contract with the Giants.

Free agent right-handed set-up man David Weathers stated last week he wasn't expecting to return to Cincinnati, which also has Mike Lincoln as an unsigned free agent. Without Weathers and Affeldt, the Reds and GM Walt Jocketty will likely have to increase efforts to shore up the bullpen for the seventh and eigthth innings.

"Walt called us on Thursday right before the opening of the market. It was the only conversation I knew of my agent having with him," Affeldt told MLB.com by phone from Maui. "Nothing serious came out of it and we went from there."

-- Mark Sheldon