Moving Kawakami is Braves' winter meeting chore

"It's a very different place to be than we've been in the last few years," said Braves general manager Frank Wren, who spent a big part of last year's meetings at Indianapolis trying to trade closer Rafael Soriano after Soriano accepted the team's arbitration offer.

Two years ago at the meetings in Las Vegas, Wren spent much of his waking hours negotiating with the agents of free-agent starting pitchers, including A.J. Burnett.

At this year's meetings at the Dolphin World Resort, Braves officials would be satisfied if they can just trade starting pitcher Kenshin Kawakami without eating most of the $6.7 million he's owed in the final year of his contract.

These meetings will be about other teams making moves like Washington did Sunday, signing Jayson Werth, a Boras client, to a seven-year, $126 million contract.

As for the Braves, they've done most of what they set out to do this winter.

After trading for slugging second baseman Dan Uggla last month, re-signing free agent Eric Hinske on Thursday and trading for reliever Scott Linebrink on Friday, Wren and the Braves have moved to the fine-tuning part of their winter program.

The schedule for the GM and his assistants won't be as hectic as in recent winter meetings, when the Braves could've used a revolving door at their suite for the volume of meetings they had with other teams.

It's not entirely about trying to trade Kawakami. The Braves will also try to add more bench depth, perhaps a center fielder in case Nate McLouth struggles and Jordan Schafer has any more problems with the wrist fracture that's slowed him for two seasons.

Wren will also consider other deals that could come up unexpectedly.

"We're still going to have conversations about Kawakami and working through how all that's going to shake out," Wren said. "I don't know the answer to that right now. And we're also looking at maybe incrementally improving our club in other areas. We're going to be open-minded. I don't see other really big moves right now, but you never know. We'll be engaged and talking to teams. It'll still be a productive [winter] meetings."

Moving Kawakami is a priority. It won't be easy without paying more of his remaining salary than the Braves have done to move a player.

Five Japanese teams expressed interest in Kawakami this winter, and at least one might have paid close to half of his 2011 salary. But Kawakami can refuse a sale to an overseas team, and the pitcher has told the Braves he wants to stay in the United States to prove he can succeed in the majors.

The Braves will continue seeking a suitor here for the 35-year-old right-hander, who was 1-10 with a 5.15 ERA in 2010. He's made about $16 million in two years and won eight games (8-22) for Atlanta.