Cardinals purchase Gibson's contract

~ A former Redhawks outfielder will get a shot at following in his famous father's footsteps.

ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday signed relief pitcher Randy Flores' younger brother and Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson's son.

The Cardinals purchased the contract of Gibson, an outfielder, from the Gateway Grizzlies of the independent Frontier League. He batted .260 in 61 games last season for Gateway, located near St. Louis in Sauget, Ill.

Gibson played two seasons at Southeast Missouri State, where he batted .223 and knocked in 32 runs. He stole 15 bases in 19 attempts and posted a .975 fielding percentage with the Redhawks. Gibson also played for the Plaza Tire Capahas, most recently during the 2006 season.

Ron Flores, 28 and a left-hander like his brother, was signed to a minor league contract. He appeared in 17 games for the Oakland Athletics last year with a 3.57 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 17 2/3 innings. He spent most of the season at Class AAA Sacramento, going 1-2 with a 2.72 ERA in 40 games.

The Cardinals also signed catcher Mark Johnson and re-signed right-hander Hugo Castellanos and third baseman Rico Washington to minor league deals. All four players will be invited to the major league spring training camp.

They also hired Moises Rodriguez as director of international operations and Juan Mercado as Latin American scouting supervisor.

Johnson, 32, batted .320 with four homers and 34 RBIs in 80 games for Class AAA Tucson last season and has played for the White Sox, Athletics and Brewers. He hasn't been in the major leagues since 2004.

Castellanos was 3-1 with a 3.49 ERA in 37 games for the Cardinals' Class AAA Memphis affiliate last season. Washington began the year with Class AA Springfield and hit .315 after a promotion to Memphis in mid-April, but his season was shortened by a left knee strain.