The Rangers and Reds agreed on a trade Friday that will send outfielder Josh Hamilton to Texas in exchange for right-hander Edison Volquez and a Minor League pitcher. Texas will have a press conference later in the day to announce the deal. Hamilton was quite a feel-good story early last season. Acquired by Cincinnati from Tampa Bay via a Rule 5 Draft trade, the 26-year-old -- who had been troubled throughout his career as a professional by drug and legal problems -- got off to an impressive start. Hamiltom missed a good chunk of the second half of the season due to a sprained wrist and a hamstring injuries. He finished the season with a .292 batting average and had 19 home runs and 47 RBIs in 90 games. The hard-throwing, 24-year-old Volquez fanned 166 batters while going 14-6 at three Minor League stops last season.

The Astros found a closer Friday, when they acquired righthander Jose Valverde from the Diamondbacks in a four-player trade. The Diamondbacks received infielder Chris Burke and righthanders Juan Gutierrez and Chad Qualls in the deal.

The Oakland A's sent All-Star Dan Haren and prospect Connor Robertson to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday for pitchers Brett Anderson, Dana Eveland and Greg Smith, infielder Chris Carter and outfielders Aaron Cunningham and Carlos Gonzalez. Haren will join a talented pitching corps that already includes Cy Young Award winner Brandon Webb and starters Doug Davis and Livan Hernandez that helped carry the D-backs to the 2007 National League Championship Series. Arizona also hopes to get Randy Johnson back from injury next year. "We are thrilled to acquire Danny Haren. His addition will bolster an already-strong starting staff and will help stabilize our roster over the next several years," Diamondbacks Senior VP/GM Josh Byrnes said. "Our success in scouting and player development allowed us to make a rare trade like this. We certainly traded many quality players, but we have the youth and depth to justify such a trade."

The Kansas City Royals have acquired switch-hitting infielder Alberto Callaspo from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for right-handed pitcher Billy Buckner. The 24-year old Callaspo (Ky-AWS-po) split his 2007 season between Triple-A Tucson and the Diamondbacks. He hit .215 (31-for-144) with eight doubles, seven RBI, nine walks and 14 strikeouts in 56 games for the N.L. West champs, appearing mostly as a pinch hitter. Callaspo dominated the Pacific Coast League, hitting .341 (77-for-226) with 15 doubles, five home runs, 30 RBI and 48 runs in 59 games for the Sidewinders. "The addition of Alberto continues to increase the versatility on our team," Royals' General Manager Dayton Moore said. "He is a young, tremendously skilled player with a great eye at the plate and very solid defensive skills at three infield positions." A 5-foot-10, 170-pounder from Maracay, Aragua, Venezuela, Callaspo made his Major League debut for the Diamondbacks in 2006 after being acquired from the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for pitcher Jason Bulger on Feb. 28, 2006. He has posted a .220 (41-for-186) career average in 79 big league games, with nine doubles, one triple, 13 RBI and 12 runs scored. Callaspo has made appearances at second base, third base, shortstop, left field and right field in his young Major League career but was primarily a second baseman at the minor league level. Originally signed by the Angels as a non-drafted free agent in 2001, Callaspo hit .337 (165-for-490) with 24 doubles, 12 triples, seven home runs, 68 RBI and 93 runs scored in 114 games with Tucson in 2006 on his way to being named the Diamondbacks' Minor League Player of the Year. He led the PCL in runs, finished second in average and triples and fourth in runs scored. He continued a career-long trend, drawing 56 walks while striking out just 27 times. In both 2004 and 2005, he was the toughest player in the minor leagues to strikeout, fanning a total of 55 times in 1,225 plate appearances.

The Rangers filled one of their primary offseason needs Wednesday night when they acquired first baseman Ben Broussard from the Mariners for minor league infielder Tug Hulett. Also Wednesday, the Rangers declined to offer a 2008 contract to Akinori Otsuka, making the reliever a free agent.

Randy Wolf will be staying in the NL West. The Padres on Monday finalized a one-year deal which the lefthander agreed to earlier this month. Terms were not disclosed.

Two teams that were very nearly World Series partners were, instead, trading partners on Friday. The Indians and Rockies completed a deal in which the Tribe will receive utility infielder Jamey Carroll in exchange for a player to be named later. With the trade, which was officially announced on Saturday, the Indians filled up their last vacant position for 2008, and the Rockies freed up some payroll. Carroll, 33, will be in the final year of a two-year contract and will make $2.3 million next season. The Indians will assume what remains of his 2008 salary and will have a club option on him for '09. Though the Indians already have Andy Marte and Josh Barfield as potential depth options at third base and second base respectively, they pinpointed a utility infielder with range up the middle and a little speed on the basepaths as a need for '08.

The Sox made a minor deal with the Cincinnati Reds, obtaining minor-league catcher Juan Apodaca. The Reds had earlier selected Apodaca in the minor-league phase of the Rule V draft from the Los Angeles Dodgers? Double-A Jacksonville affiliate. The Sox then obtained Apodaca from the Reds for cash considerations. He was placed on the Pawtucket roster.

The Brewers made another move to strengthen their depleted bullpen Friday, acquiring veteran righthander Salomon Torres from the Pirates for a pair of minor-league pitchers. Torres appeared in 56 games for the Pirates last season, going 2-4 with a 5.47 ERA and 12 saves. Pittsburgh received righthanders Marino Salas and Kevin Roberts from the Brewers, who traded for Torres just two days after signing righthander David Riske to a three-year, $13 million deal.

The Blue Jays on Friday traded pitcher Justin James to the Reds, completing the deal that saw them acquire infielder-outfielder Buck Coats on Wednesday. James, 26, split the 2007 season with Class AA New Hampshire of the Eastern League and Class AAA Syracuse of the International League. The 6-3 righthander posted a combined record of 3-5 record with a 3.89 ERA in 43 games.