He struggled with a 5.96 ERA last season with San Diego. At age 33, Villanueva's days in MLB may be over.

He struggled to a 5.96 ERA last season with San Diego. At age 33, Villanueva's days in MLB may be over.

In an effort to provide depth and experience to a depleted bullpen, San Diego has signed a former Cardinal reliever to a one year deal. Carlos Villanueva agreed to a $1.5 million dollar contract with the Padres. He was 4-3 last year with two saves for St. Louis. Villanueva has spent time as a starter and reliever in the majors. His 55:21 K:BB in 61 innings and 2.95 ERA will make him an interesting end game play if he can pitch high leverage innings for the Padres in 2016.

Villanueva picked up the rare three-inning save on Friday night, stealing a statistic even when the Cards were up by six runs. Don’t expect many more outings like this from Villanueva going forward, as he serves more as a middle inning guy.

Villanueva has found himself a nice home in the bullpen and will handle a middle relief role for the Cardinals now. He could find his way into a spot start at some random point, but nothing you want a piece of in fantasy leagues.