St. Louis announced its signings of Reggie Sanders and pitcher Jeff Suppan.
By Ben Walker
AP Baseball Writer

Omar Vizquel got ready to return to Seattle, highlighting yet another busy day of baseball maneuvering.

A day after the winter meetings wrapped up, it was hard to tell the session ever ended. Reggie Sanders, Jose Guillen and Michael Barrett were among the players on the move and New York made plans to introduce Gary Sheffield at Yankee Stadium.

No official word, either, on a trade that would send Vizquel from Cleveland to the Mariners for Carlos Guillen in a swap of shortstops.

The teams agreed to the deal pending Vizquel passing a physical, a baseball source told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. The trade could be announced Wednesday.

The Mariners had pursued free agent Miguel Tejada. Once the 2002 AL MVP signed with Baltimore, they turned their attention to Vizquel.

Vizquel, 36, spent five seasons in Seattle and was among the team’s most popular players. The defensive whiz is a nine-time Gold Glove winner and still lives in the Seattle area despite being traded to the Indians 10 years ago.

St. Louis announced its signings of Sanders and pitcher Jeff Suppan.

Sanders joined his seventh team in seven seasons, agreeing to a $6 million, two-year contract.

The Cardinals needed an outfielder after trading J.D. Drew and Eli Marrero to Atlanta.

Sanders, 36, hit 31 home runs last season for Pittsburgh.

“My kids are like, ‘Dad, what team are you going to play for next year?”‘ Sanders said. “They’re used to it.”

Suppan also got a $6 million, two-year deal. He was 13-11 with a 4.19 ERA last year for Pittsburgh and Boston and has pitched at least 200 innings for five straight years.

“He is a guy that will definitely add some quality innings to our rotation,” GM Walt Jocketty said.

“It’s likely that you are not going to sign a more consistent performer.”

Guillen said he had signed with the Anaheim Angels. The free agent outfielder split last season with Oakland and Cincinnati, and he hit .455 in the AL playoffs despite playing with a broken left hand.

Guillen’s deal is for two years and worth about $6 million.

“I wanted a contract guaranteeing several years with one team, and that’s the most important thing. I’m thrilled to be part of the Angels, a team that won the World Series just a year ago,” he said in the Dominican Republic.

Oakland traded Barrett to the Cubs just a day after acquiring him from Montreal. The A’s will receive a player to be named from Chicago.

Barrett, 27, batted .208 with 10 home runs and 30 RBIs during a season full of injuries.

“When healthy, I feel like I can be as good as any catcher out there,” he said. “The good thing is I’m relatively young and I still feel like I have room to grow.”