ST. LOUIS — Outfielder Carlos Beltran and the St. Louis Cardinals agreed to a two-year, $26 million contract Thursday night.

Beltran, 34, likely will play right field. Allen Craig was penciled in to play right until undergoing a knee surgery that will sideline him for at least the first month.

“Beltran is a proven outfielder who obviously has been a tough opponent against the Cardinals for many years,” Cardinals General Manager John Mozeliak said in a statement released by the team. “It is going to be nice to have his bat and competitive nature working for us instead of on the other side of the field for the next couple of years.”

Beltran, a former center fielder and six-time All-Star, batted .300 with 39 doubles, six triples, 22 home runs and 84 RBIs in 142 games with the New York Mets and San Francisco Giants. Beltran won Gold Glove Awards from 2006-08.

The switch-hitting Beltran has had injury problems in the past, but if he’s healthy, he figures to be a force in a lineup that will try to recover from the free-agent defection of Albert Pujols to the Los Angeles Angels.

New Cardinals manager Mike Matheny could bat Beltran third or fifth, assuming left fielder Matt Holliday remains in the cleanup spot. Lance Berkman, who played right field last season, will take over at first base for Pujols.

Beltran has a .283 career average with 302 homers and 1,146 RBIs in 1,768 games. His signing makes him a teammate of pitcher Adam Wainwright, who caught Beltran looking at a called third strike to end Game 7 of the National League Championship Series in 2006 when Beltran was with the New York Mets.

The Cardinals went on to defeat the Detroit Tigers in the World Series.

Beltran also had a big series against St. Louis in the 2004 NLCS, that series also was won by the Cardinals in seven games.

St. Louis will be Beltran’s fifth team, following the Kansas City Royals, Houston Astros, the Mets and Giants.

ST. LOUIS (AP)—The St. Louis Cardinals finalized a two-year, $14 million
free agent deal with shortstop Rafael Furcal, a trade deadline pickup who helped
them in their run to the World Series title.

The deal was completed Wednesday after the 34-year-old Furcal passed a
physical. He gets salaries of $6 million next year and $7 million in 2013, along
with a $1 million signing bonus.

Furcal batted .255 with St. Louis, solidifying the defense along with the
leadoff slot. He turned 36 double plays, most among National League shortstops,
in the final two months.

The Cardinals moved to retain Furcal after star slugger Albert Pujols signed
with the Los Angeles Angels, freeing up payroll. They had been considering
giving prospect Tyler Greene a shot at regular duty.

ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis Cardinals finalized a two-year, $14 million free agent deal with shortstop Rafael Furcal, a trade deadline pickup who helped them in their run to the World Series title.

The deal was completed Wednesday after the 34-year-old Furcal passed a physical. He gets salaries of $6 million next year and $7 million in 2013, along with a $1 million signing bonus.

Furcal batted .255 with St. Louis, solidifying the defense along with the leadoff slot. He turned 36 double plays, most among National League shortstops, in the final two months.

The Cardinals moved to retain Furcal after star slugger Albert Pujols signed with the Los Angeles Angels, freeing up payroll. They had been considering giving prospect Tyler Greene a shot at regular duty.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The St. Louis Cardinals were feted by hundreds of thousands of fans, two days after their determined triumph over the Texas Rangers in the World Series.

Not even the prospect that Albert Pujols could be lost to free agency could dim fans’ enthusiasm, as those who turned out cheered the slugger as he and their teammates made their way down the parade route ending at Busch Stadium.

“Hey, why not?” Pujols smiled when asked if he’d like to stay in St. Louis and try for another Major League Baseball title next year.

Whatever uncertainties hover over next season, the Cardinals faithful were keen to celebrate their team’s unlikely run to the 2011 crown.

The Cardinals didn’t even book their playoff berth until the last day of the regular season. They beat the favored Phillies in the National League playoffs, and were twice down to their last strike in game six of the World Series against the Rangers — who would have taken the title with a victory in that contest.

“This 11th Cardinals world championship will always be remembered as one of baseball’s greatest achievements,” Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt jnr said, noting that his team had to win four elimination games in the post-season.

Added manager Tony La Russa: “What these guys did so many times facing elimination, it’s a lesson for all of us,” La Russa said. “They never quit.”

David Freese, the hometown boy who was named Most Valuable Player of the World Series, recalled his joy in 2007 at learning he had been traded to the Cardinals.

Freese said he was sitting in a fast-food restaurant when “I got the greatest phone call of my life, that I had been traded to the St. Louis Cardinals.”

Amid the music of high school marching bands and the cries of hot dog and peanut vendors, pickup trucks carrying the current players and Cardinals legends such as Lou Brock and Red Schoendienst received euphoric welcomes from the people they passed.

“I’ll never forget any of this,” said outfielder Allen Craig, who hit three homers in the World Series, said. “It’s been great.”