01:00 AM EST on Tuesday, December 20, 2005

BOSTON -- As the midnight deadline for accepting or rejecting salary arbitration approached late last night, there was no official word on the decisions of the two Red Sox players -- center fielder Johnny Damon and second baseman Tony Graffanino -- who were offered arbitration by the team.

But numerous reports indicated the Sox received word that Damon, as expected, had rejected the offer and Graffanino, surprisingly, had accepted it.

By accepting salary arbitration, a player has legally agreed to a one-year contract with the team. (The offer of arbitration is a legal offer of a one-year contract.) Graffanino thus will return to the Sox in 2006, which Boston clearly didn't expect. Otherwise, the Sox wouldn't have traded for San Diego second baseman Mark Loretta.

The team offered Graffanino arbitration in the expectation he would reject it. The Sox then would have received a compensatory draft pick from whatever team signed the veteran second baseman as a free agent. Graffanino's return creates a second-base logjam, and it's unlikely either player could be moved to shortstop, where the Sox have an opening. Both Graffanino and Loretta have played shortstop in the past, but neither has done so for several years.

There were no similar surprises with Damon, who is seeking a seven-year, $84 million free-agent contact. He reportedly rejected the offer and now has until Jan. 8 to reach contract agreement with the Red Sox. If the sides don't have a deal by then, they will be unable to negotiate again until May 1.