Cardinals sign Japanese player

ST. LOUIS, Jan. 9 (UPI) -- The St. Louis Cardinals Wednesday signed former Japanese All-Star outfielder So Taguchi, a former teammate of Ichiro Suzuki's, to a three-year contract worth a reported $3 million.

Taguchi, 32, spent the last 10 years with the Orix Blue Wave of the Japanese Pacific League but became a free agent following the 2001 season and decided to follow his former teammate to the United States.

The Cardinals and New York Yankees were among four major leagues vying for the services of the 5-10, 163-pound Taguchi.

"I chose St. Louis because they offered me a chance to be part of a team with tradition and they have a winning attitude," Taguchi said. "I've heard much about the great Cardinals' teams and players and also the St. Louis fans. The chance to play for manager Tony La Russa is also something that I look forward to."

Like Suzuki, the 2001 American League Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player, Taguchi is solid defensively. He earned five Golden Glove Awards in Japan, where he batted .280 with eight home runs and 42 RBI in 134 games this past season.

"We had our scouts watch Taguchi during a tryout in Arizona and we also received very good reports from the scout who followed both he and Ichiro when they played together in Japan," said Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty. "Everything we have heard is that So is a tremendous person, and after meeting him personally, I could really see how excited he was to become a St. Louis Cardinal."

In Japan, Taguchi had a .277 career average with 67 homers, 404 RBI and 83 stolen bases in 1,107 games.