The Tampa Bay Rays signed reliever Troy Percival to a two-year contract Friday, addressing a pressing need to improve one of the worst bullpens in the major leagues. The 38-year-old right-hander, who came out of retirement to go 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA in 34 appearances for St. Louis in 2007, will make $8 million during the next two seasons. In addition, he'll have a chance to earn another $4 million-plus in performance incentives. A four-time AL All-Star, Percival is 12th on the all-time saves list with 324. He is 33-41 with a 3.02 ERA in 639 career games with the Cardinals, Detroit Tigers and Los Angeles Angels, where he spent the first 10 years of his career and built a close relationship with Rays' Manager Joe Maddon. Percival left baseball after injuring his right forearm in while pitching for Detroit and missing half of 2005 and all of 2006. He signed with the Cardinals in June 2007 and worked almost exclusively in middle relief this year.

Hoping to improve their defense, the Cardinals on Friday signed free agent shortstop Cesar Izturis to a one-year contract. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Kenny Rogers ended his free agency Friday and will return to the Detroit Tigers for a third season. Rogers agreed to a one-year deal, representing himself in contract negotiations. He was 3-4 with a 4.43 ERA in an injury-shortened 2007 season after helping the Tigers reach the 2006 World Series.

Jorge Posada and the New York Yankees finalized his $52.4 million, four-year contract on Thursday, more than two weeks after the All-Star catcher and the team reached a preliminary agreement on the deal. Posada gets $13.1 million in each of the four seasons, the highest average salary for a catcher. Mike Piazza averaged $13 million under his contract with the New York Mets from 1999-2005, and Detroit's Ivan Rodriguez will make $13 million next season, the option year of his deal. New York also is working to finalize agreements with third baseman Alex Rodriguez ($275 million for 10 years), closer Mariano Rivera ($45 million for three years) and backup catcher Jose Molina ($4 million for two years). While Posada will turn 40 in the final season of the contract, the Yankees have said they are not concerned about his age, saying the switch-hitter could be shifted eventually to designated hitter or first base. He hit a team-high .338 last season with 20 homers and 90 RBIs.

Jose Cruz Jr. is following in the footsteps of his father. Cruz was one of four players to sign a minor-league contract with the Astros on Wednesday. Cruz's father, who is the Astros' first base coach, played for Houston from 1975-87.

Francisco Cordero has cashed in on his outstanding season. Cordero signed a four-year contract with the Reds on Wednesday. Financial terms were not disclosed, but Foxsports.com reported last week the deal is worth $49 million and includes a fifth-year club option which would bring the overall value of the contract up to $57 million. It is the largest four-year contract ever given to a closer, surpassing the $43 million deal Billy Wagner signed with the Mets on November 28, 2005.

The White Sox bolstered their porous bullpen, finalizing a four-year contract with reliever Scott Linebrink. Linebrink's deal is worth $19 million. The White Sox hope that Linebrink will help shore up a bullpen that was the third-worst in baseball with a 5.47 ERA in 2007.

The Kansas City Royals signed right-handed pitcher Yasuhiko Yabuta to a two-year contract with an option for 2010. Terms of the contract were not disclosed. "Yasuhiko has been one of the best relievers in Japan the last several years," Royals' General Manager Dayton Moore said. "He will be an important veteran arm that will help add stability to the back end of our bullpen." Yabuta, 34, will become just the second Japanese-born player to appear for the Royals, joining Mac Suzuki, who pitched for the Royals from 1999-2002. Yabuta has spent his entire 12-year professional career pitching for the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan's Pacific League from 1996-2007. A native of Osaka, Japan, the 6-foot-2, 185-pounder is 44-59 with nine saves and a 4.03 ERA in 343 career appearances including 86 starts.

Pitcher Doug Brocail and the Houston Astros agreed Tuesday to a $2.5 million, one-year contract, a deal that includes a team option for 2009. The 40-year-old right-hander played for the Astros in 1995 and 1996. He appeared in 59 games, making 11 starts, and went 7-9 with one save and a 4.35 ERA. Brocail appeared in 67 games for San Diego last season, all in relief, and went 5-1 with a 3.05 ERA. He held hitters to a .228 average. "Doug is a battle-tested, veteran reliever who will make our bullpen stronger," new Astros' General Manager Ed Wade said. "He's a great competitor and has shown the ability to pitch a lot while performing equally well against both left-handed and right-handed hitters."

Don Long, who spent the past nine seasons as the Phillies' minor league hitting coordinator, was named hitting coach for the Pirates on Tuesday.