UPDATE: The Cardinals have officially signed Fuentes to a minor league deal, the team has announced.

The #Cardinals have agreed to terms on a minor league deal with LHP Brian Fuentes.

— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) July 14, 2012

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8:00am: The St. Louis Cardinals are nearing a deal with and are "likely to sign" lefty reliever Brian Fuentes, sources have told Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.

Lefty reliever Brian Fuentes is likely to join the Cardinals, sources said. The Cardinals have a need for a lefty out of the pen. Mark Rzepczynski hasn't been as effective as last year, and has a 5.52 ERA.

Fuentes has drawn interest from several teams since his outright release from the Oakland Athletics earlier this week, and has been on the Cardinals' radar since at least last Monday. The 36-year-old left-hander disappointed in Oakland, amassing a 6.84 ERA in 25 innings this year, but the Cardinals obviously still believe he can provide value out of the pen.

The lefty reliever owns a career 3.58 ERA, 9.4 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9, though his K rate has not exceeded 9.0 since 2008.

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Will Fuentes be a good addition to the Cardinals' bullpen?

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