Wednesday to a $16 million, two-year contract with the Los Angeles
Angels, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated
Press.
Pineiro’s deal is subject to a
physical, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because
the agreement was not yet final.
Los Angeles hopes Pineiro will help
fill a hole created by the departure of John Lackey, who left the AL
West champions for an $82.5 million, five-year deal with the Boston Red
Sox. Pineiro also had been sought by the Los Angeles Dodgers and New
York Mets, who earlier in the week lost out on Bengie Molina when the
free-agent catcher decided to stay with San Francisco.
A 31-year-old right-hander, Pineiro
was 15-12 with a 3.49 ERA last season for the St. Louis Cardinals, his
best season since going 16-11 for Seattle in 2003. He has an 87-79
record with a 4.39 ERA in 10 major league season that also included a
stint with the Red Sox.
He joins a rotation that includes
holdovers Jered Weaver (16-8), Joe Saunders (16-7), Scott Kazmir (10-9)
and Ervin Santana (8-8).
Since losing to the Yankees in the AL
championship series, the Angels have lost Lackey, All-Star third
baseman Chone Figgins, designated hitter Vladimir Guerrero and reliever
Darren Oliver to free agency. They replaced Guerrero at DH with Hideki
Matsui and added Fernando Rodney to the bullpen.