Catcher Rodriguez Close to Signing With Tigers

Ivan Rodriguez and the Detroit Tigers were on the verge of agreeing to a $40-million, four-year contract, Associated Press reported Wednesday night.

The 10-time All-Star catcher was to be examined in Texas today by Dr. Andrew Dossett, two sources told AP on the condition of anonymity. Dossett is the spine consultant to the Rangers and has treated Rodriguez for many years.

If all goes well in the exam, the agreement between the free agent and Detroit could be announced Friday, one of the sources said.

The agreement contains a team option for 2008 that could make the contract worth $50 million over five years, one of the sources said.

Rodriguez, 32, spent his first 12 seasons with the Rangers, then became a free agent and signed a $10-million, one-year deal with the Florida Marlins.

Rodriguez batted .313 last season with 16 homers and 85 runs batted in.

*

All-Star Melvin Mora agreed to a $10.5-million, three-year contract with the Baltimore Orioles, avoiding salary arbitration.

Mora batted .317 with 15 homers and 48 RBIs in 96 games last season.

The San Diego Padres have invited former National League most valuable player Ken Caminiti to spring training as an instructor, mostly for minor leaguers.

General Manager Kevin Towers said the invitation was made through Caminiti’s agent, and the team hasn’t heard back from Caminiti.

Todd Zeile finalized a $1-million, one-year contract with the New York Mets.

Zeile batted .210 with six homers and 23 RBIs in 186 at-bats before he was released on Aug. 17 by the New York Yankees. He signed with Montreal three days later and batted .257 with five homers and 19 RBIs in 113 at-bats.

Darren Oliver agreed to a $750,000, one-year contract with the Marlins, a deal contingent on the left-hander passing a physical.

Oliver, 33, was 13-11 with a 5.04 earned-run average in 33 games and 180 innings for the Colorado Rockies last season.

Tiger third baseman Dean Palmer, who hit 275 home runs in 14 seasons, retired after three years of neck and shoulder injuries that limited him to a total of 87 games. Palmer, 35, has had three operations on his right shoulder since the end of the 2000 season.

Infielder Tyler Houston and outfielder Darren Bragg have agreed to minor league contracts with the Yankees. Houston, 33, batted .278 with two homers and 14 RBIs last year with Philadelphia. Bragg, 34, batted .241 with no homers and nine RBIs in 162 at-bats with Atlanta.

Wally Backman was hired to manage the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Class A Lancaster JetHawks.

Pro Football

Former Green Bay Packer general manager Ron Wolf , 65, will be a personnel specialist for the Cleveland Browns.

Wolf said he would evaluate players on a part-time basis.

Dick Jauron, who was fired Dec. 29 as coach of the Chicago Bears, was hired as defensive coordinator by the Detroit Lions.

The Oakland Raiders appointed Jimmy Raye assistant head coach and offensive coordinator. He spent the last two seasons with the New York Jets.

Free-agent receiver Marvin Minnis signed with the Miami Dolphins.... The Packers promoted assistant Bob Slowik to defensive coordinator and hired former Lion assistant Kurt Schottenheimer as defensive backs coach.

Miscellany

The mayor of the Athens suburb of Nikea, which will play host to Olympic weightlifting competition, ordered crews to vandalize street security cameras after residents complained they violated their privacy.

It was the first direct act of defiance against the thousands of cameras being installed around Athens to bolster security for the Olympics.

Mayor Stelios Benetatos ordered municipal workers to disable three surveillance cameras with spray paint because residents didn’t want everything they did being recorded without their permission.

The Connecticut Sun traded four-time WNBA All-Star guard Shannon Johnson to the San Antonio Silver Stars for draft picks. The Sun also will give up their second- and third-round picks -- the 21st and 34th picks overall -- in exchange for the Silver Stars’ fourth, 16th and 29th picks in the April draft.

World slalom champion Ivica Kostelic of Croatia is expected to sit out the rest of the season after undergoing knee surgery following a crash in a World Cup race at Schladming, Austria.

Former World Cup downhill champion Regina Haeusl of Germany tore ligaments in her left knee during a practice run at Haus, Austria, and could sit out the rest of the season.

T.J. Simers is on assignment.