The St. Louis Cardinals have signed free-agent RHP Luis Garcia to a Major League contract, he will join the club this afternoon in Chicago.
Johan Oviedo was optioned to Memphis yesterday and Carlos Martinez was moved to the 60-day IL to create the roster spot.
Garcia, 34, has 315 innings pitched in 326 career Major League games, mostly with the Phillies. He also spent time with the Angels and Rangers. He was 14-17 with a 4.26 ERA.
The Santo Domingo, D.R. native was signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers as an International free agent in 2004 just days before his 17th birthday and he debuted in the States in 2007 with the Gulf Coast League Dodgers. García has appeared in 258 career games in the minors, most recently with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees.
In 18 games for the Scranton/Wilke-Barre RailRiders this season, García was 1-2 with a 3.63 ERA, striking out 19 in 17.1 innings of relief with just three walks allowed. García, who was released by the Yankees on July 6, made his last appearance for the RailRiders on June 26.
García joins recent additions to the Cardinals pitching staff over the past three weeks that have included Wade LeBlanc, Brandon Waddell and Justin Miller.
García has been assigned uniform no. 66.
