MajorMike
01-30-2007, 11:22 AM
Boy, the Cards owned some hatas in this thread :smokin
Preston Wilson came up huge against the Mets too.
Game tying hit and winning run in game 5.
Bring him on back Walt.
They did just that. 1 Mil for him is a STEAL.
Preston Wilson re-signs with the Cardinals
By Derrick Goold
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
01/30/2007
As the Cardinals pursued and pursued and pursued pitching, Preston Wilson weighed interest from other clubs but waited for his preferred destination, the Cardinals, to express their interest in the form of a contract.
Last week, he got the offer he sought.
On Monday, he signed.
Wilson, a late-season addition who took on a larger role than expected come October, agreed to a one-year major league deal that guarantees him $1 million for the 2007 season. The righthanded-hitting outfielder can earn an additional $500,000 in incentives and essentially completes the Cardinals' offseason shopping, about two weeks before the start of spring training.
"Preston is happy for an opportunity, knowing that he is going to get a chance to play, knowing that Tony (La Russa) wants him there," said Wilson's agent, St. Louis-based Bob Bry. "He wanted to come back because of the experience he had with the World Series, with the way the season ended. ... He knows he's going to get a chance (there). He's not your typical fourth outfielder."
Wilson, 32, offers an additional bat and a veteran glove to a position of uncertain health for the Cardinals. Center fielder Jim Edmonds and right fielder Juan Encarnacion are expected to be ready for opening day, but they will be slowed this spring as they recover from surgeries. Edmonds had shoulder and toe operations in the offseason, while Encarnacion had surgery to replace a ligament in his left wrist.
A .292 hitter against lefthanded pitching last season, Wilson also offers a complement to second-year slugger and left fielder Chris Duncan, a lefthanded hitter who was spelled against some lefties last summer.
"With all the free agents we had in pitching, we had to go and take our best there and when that reached a finality we could fill other needs. I told (Wilson) it's not for lack of interest," La Russa said late Monday night. "I just think there's potential for significant at-bats at that position. We were impressed with the lift Preston gave us on and off the field."
Wilson, three seasons removed from leading the NL with 141 RBIs, had been consistent, even insistent, with his interest in returning to the Cardinals. He started in nine of the club's 16 postseason games, the first October of his career. Around Christmas, La Russa called Wilson and assured him the Cardinals wanted him back, they just had made pitching a priority. La Russa affirmed his wish to have Wilson back to join So Taguchi as a righthanded outfield alternative during the team's visit to the White House.
With the last of their pitching targets, Jeff Weaver, agreeing to a deal with Seattle this past weekend, the Cardinals moved on Wilson. To make room for him on the 40-man roster, the Cardinals designated Class AAA catcher Michel Hernandez for assignment.
Wilson joined the Cardinals in August as a free agent recently released by Houston, where he had 55 RBIs. In 33 regular-season games for the Cardinals, Wilson hit eight of his 17 home runs and batted .243 with 17 RBIs. He drove in the go-ahead run in Game 5 of the NLCS.
Preston Wilson came up huge against the Mets too.
Game tying hit and winning run in game 5.
Bring him on back Walt.
They did just that. 1 Mil for him is a STEAL.
Preston Wilson re-signs with the Cardinals
By Derrick Goold
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
01/30/2007
As the Cardinals pursued and pursued and pursued pitching, Preston Wilson weighed interest from other clubs but waited for his preferred destination, the Cardinals, to express their interest in the form of a contract.
Last week, he got the offer he sought.
On Monday, he signed.
Wilson, a late-season addition who took on a larger role than expected come October, agreed to a one-year major league deal that guarantees him $1 million for the 2007 season. The righthanded-hitting outfielder can earn an additional $500,000 in incentives and essentially completes the Cardinals' offseason shopping, about two weeks before the start of spring training.
"Preston is happy for an opportunity, knowing that he is going to get a chance to play, knowing that Tony (La Russa) wants him there," said Wilson's agent, St. Louis-based Bob Bry. "He wanted to come back because of the experience he had with the World Series, with the way the season ended. ... He knows he's going to get a chance (there). He's not your typical fourth outfielder."
Wilson, 32, offers an additional bat and a veteran glove to a position of uncertain health for the Cardinals. Center fielder Jim Edmonds and right fielder Juan Encarnacion are expected to be ready for opening day, but they will be slowed this spring as they recover from surgeries. Edmonds had shoulder and toe operations in the offseason, while Encarnacion had surgery to replace a ligament in his left wrist.
A .292 hitter against lefthanded pitching last season, Wilson also offers a complement to second-year slugger and left fielder Chris Duncan, a lefthanded hitter who was spelled against some lefties last summer.
"With all the free agents we had in pitching, we had to go and take our best there and when that reached a finality we could fill other needs. I told (Wilson) it's not for lack of interest," La Russa said late Monday night. "I just think there's potential for significant at-bats at that position. We were impressed with the lift Preston gave us on and off the field."
Wilson, three seasons removed from leading the NL with 141 RBIs, had been consistent, even insistent, with his interest in returning to the Cardinals. He started in nine of the club's 16 postseason games, the first October of his career. Around Christmas, La Russa called Wilson and assured him the Cardinals wanted him back, they just had made pitching a priority. La Russa affirmed his wish to have Wilson back to join So Taguchi as a righthanded outfield alternative during the team's visit to the White House.
With the last of their pitching targets, Jeff Weaver, agreeing to a deal with Seattle this past weekend, the Cardinals moved on Wilson. To make room for him on the 40-man roster, the Cardinals designated Class AAA catcher Michel Hernandez for assignment.
Wilson joined the Cardinals in August as a free agent recently released by Houston, where he had 55 RBIs. In 33 regular-season games for the Cardinals, Wilson hit eight of his 17 home runs and batted .243 with 17 RBIs. He drove in the go-ahead run in Game 5 of the NLCS.