PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 29 (UPI) -- The Philadelphia Inquirer, citing major-league baseball sources, says catcher Mike Piazza has signed a one-year contract with San Diego.
The deal is expected to be made official on Monday.
"The Padres told Mike that he could pretty much catch as much as he wanted to," Piazza's agent, Dan Lozano, said on the Padres' Web site. Lozano added that Piazza is hoping to catch about 90-100 games this season, play some first base and be the DH in inter-league games.
Piazza, 37, one of the most dangerous hitting catchers in baseball history, was interested in signing a free-agent deal with an American League team to become a designated hitter.
In 2005, Piazza had a career-worst .251 batting average, with 19 home runs and 62 RBI in 113 games for the New York Mets. In his career, he is a .311 hitter with 397 homers and 1,223 RBI in 14 seasons.
