UPDATE: Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is reporting that the Cardinals are not involved in the Jose Valverde talks.
The Jose Valverde race has picked up in recent weeks, with the Cardinals and Tigers emerging as the frontrunners for his services. The Cardinals reportedly made an offer to the closer, says Tim Brown, and the Tigers are still in communications with the closer.
Valverde, 31, a Type-A free agent, posted a 2.13 ERA and 1.13 WHIP while getting 25 saves in 29 chances.
The Cardinals are an interesting team to emerge in this race, considering they already have Ryan Franklin and just signed Matt Holliday to a mega-deal. Many have speculated all offseason that the Tigers would sign Valverde, and it is possible the Tigers are waiting for his price to come down.
One AL source believes Valverde's price is in the range of a two year deal worth 16-20 million dollars.