NewsWellemeyer files for free agency
Right-hander unlikely to return to Cards next year
By Matthew Leach / MLB.com
11/09/09 7:18 PM EST
ST. LOUIS -- Todd Wellemeyer became the ninth and final Cardinals player to file for free agency on Monday, the fifth day that eligible players could formally file.Wellemeyer heads into free agency off a disappointing season in which he had the second-highest ERA of any National League pitcher with at least 120 innings. A year earlier, he was one of the Cards' most pleasant surprises, but he pitched his way out of the rotation in 2009.
As a result, it is likely that Wellemeyer will be pitching elsewhere next year. The Cardinals would have little stomach for a return engagement with Wellemeyer in their rotation, and the team's bullpen is already all but set.
Rick Ankiel, Mark DeRosa, Troy Glaus, Khalil Greene, Matt Holliday, Jason LaRue and John Smoltz all formally filed on Thursday, with Joel Pineiro following them on Friday. No other Cardinals, other than released right-hander Brad Thompson, can be free agents this offseason.
Players have a 15-day window, which began on Thursday, to file for free agency. That's also the same window during which teams have exclusive rights to negotiate with their own free agents. A club may express interest with another club's free agent during that window, but it is not permitted to discuss actual contract terms.
Wellemeyer is a no-compensation free agent.
Matthew Leach is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
