Cardinals release Ty Wigginton

The St. Louis Cardinals have released third baseman Ty Wigginton, in a move first reported by Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com.

Just announced: #STLCards promote C Rob Johnson, release IF Ty Wigginton.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 9, 2013

Wigginton was signed to a two-year, $5MM deal this offseason and was played sparingly by manager Mike Matheny, logging only 63 total plate appearances and hitting only .158. In his place, the Cardinals purchased the contract of catcher Rob Johnson from Triple-A Memphis.

The possibility of Wigginton's release was first brought up by Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, who said that the team was looking to make a roster move involving the 35-year old before tonight's game. Now a free agent, the veteran will try to latch on with a team looking for veteran leadership and versatility.

The New York Yankees, who have been known to be in the market for a utility player, may have interest in Wigginton in the next couple of weeks.

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