NAPLES, Fla. -- As the free agent signing period began in earnest Sunday, the Giants have intensified their discussions with Jeff Borris, the agent for Barry Bonds, about the possibility of the slugger returning to San Francisco in 2007 to play his 15th season in that uniform.

The last discussion between Borris and Larry Baer, the Giants' vice president and chief operating officer, occurred late last week.

"The talks are moving forward," Borris said when reached by phone in Los Angeles on Sunday, adding that there had been no further negotiations between the two sides this weekend.

A source close to the negotiations said the Giants have made their first offer, although neither Baer nor Borris would confirm such an occurrence.

"The dialogue is continuing," said Baer, when reached in San Francisco on Friday.

Meanwhile, Borris said he had discussions about Bonds with multiple teams from both leagues Sunday, the first day free agents were allowed to negotiate with every Major League franchise. The left-handed hitter has 734 lifetime homers, 21 behind Hank Aaron's all-time Major League record of 755.

"Teams that told me during the week they were going to call on Sunday, called on Sunday," said Borris, who declined to place a number on how many teams he had spoken with.

Borris did say that interest in the American League is widespread.

"We have AL teams who are interested in him solely as a left fielder," he added. "We have AL teams interested in him solely as a designated hitter. And we have AL teams interested in him doing both."

With the annual general managers' meetings set to begin here Monday, it will be a busy offseason for Bonds and the Giants, who have 11 free agents on the market from their 2006 roster. None of them re-signed with the Giants during the period of exclusivity, leaving them looking for a first baseman, second baseman, third baseman, right fielder, left fielder, a front-line starter and a lefty bullpen specialist. With Mike Matheny out indefinitely because of post-concussion syndrome, another catcher may also be on their radar.

The Giants have some interest in Dave Roberts, the former Padres outfielder, and have had preliminary discussions with John Boggs, his agent. Roberts would be a nice fit in San Francisco as a leadoff hitter, base-stealing threat and center fielder. He also flourished in San Diego under the tutelage of manager Bruce Bochy, who recently left the Padres and signed a three-year deal to manage the Giants.

In the event that the Giants would re-sign Bonds and add Roberts, the latter would play center with incumbent Randy Winn moving to right. Roberts, who batted .293 and stole 49 bases for the National League West-winning Padres, is also drawing attention from multiple teams, Boggs said.

As far as the 42-year-old Bonds is concerned, though the Giants have remained communicative with Borris, they are no closer to signing him now than they were a week ago.

That all could change shortly.

Bonds was expected to be in the San Francisco Bay Area on Monday for the funeral of close friend and Giants senior general partner Harmon Burns, who passed away last week. Baer and Peter Magowan, the team's president and managing general partner, are also expected to be at the service, marking the first time since the end of the season that the three men will be together.

Borris said that the day was of no business consequence.

"Barry is going to the funeral because Harmon was a close and good friend," Borris said.

But Burns, who owned a large portion of the team, which will now convey to his wife, was an enthusiastic proponent of having Bonds return to the Giants next season to break Aaron's record.

Burns, who was 61, had been sick for the past year. And Harvey Shields, one of Bonds' longtime personal trainers, had spent an abundance of time with Burns acting as a physical therapist during that illness.

The relationship between Burns and Bonds could be a factor.

"What better way to honor Harmon than to have Barry play the 2007 season in a Giants uniform?" a source said.

Bonds grew up south of San Francisco and has made it clear on numerous occasions that he would prefer to finish his career with his hometown team.

Barry M. Bloom is a national reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Nice find. Dave Roberts is an interesting option, I wouldn't mind seeing him as a Giant. We've always been looking for a speedster at the top of the order anyways.