"CC Sabathia, widely considered the main attraction on this winter's free-agent stage, was among the 23 players who filed for free agency Saturday.

Sabathia, who went 11-2 with a 1.65 ERA in 17 starts for Milwaukee, can negotiate only with the Brewers during the 15-day filing window, though he can talk with other teams on issues besides salary. The Brewers, who reached the playoffs for the first time since 1982 in part because of the July acquisition of Sabathia, would like to bring the left-hander back in 2009.

"We'll make the offer and go from there," Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said.

Also filing Saturday were Arizona outfielder Adam Dunn and infielder Orlando Hudson, White Sox infielder Orlando Cabrera and San Diego's Trevor Hoffman, the all-time saves leader.

Hoffman, 41, was offered a contract by the Padres during the past two weeks, though as of last week, general manager Kevin Towers had yet to hear back from Hoffman's agent, Rick Thurman.

Last month, Towers and Hoffman talked briefly about the reliever's future, and Hoffman stated his interest in returning. Towers has said in the past month he would like Hoffman to return as well.

Hoffman, who has 554 career saves, made $7.5 million last season. It's not known what type of contract the team will offer Hoffman, though a one-year deal with incentives and a club option might be in the ballpark.

"Well, I think I have more than one [season left]," Hoffman told MLB.com last month. "My body feels good. My arm feels a heck of a lot better than it has the last few years. The competitive juices are still there."

Three-time All-Star reliever Brian Fuentes was among four players who spent the 2008 season with Colorado to file Saturday. Pitchers Matt Herges and Livan Hernandez and outfielder Scott Podsednik were the others."