Cardinals, Rzepczynski settle on deal; Freese unsigned

The St. Louis Cardinals and left-handed reliever Marc Rzepczynski avoided arbitration by settling on a one-year, $1.1 million contract on Friday, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Rzepczynski, 27, requested $1.3 million and the Cardinals offered $900,000 in exchanging arbitration figures before deciding on a deal. Rzepczynski can earn another $25,000 if he makes 70 appearances and an additional $25,000 if he appears in 75 or more games. He pitched in 70 games last year. He had a 4.24 ERA in 46 2/3 innings in 2012. He made $504,000. Also, third baseman David Freese remains the only Cardinal eligible for arbitration who is unsigned. He is seeking $3.75 million while the Cardinals have offered $2.4 million. Freese hit .293 with 20 home runs last year and made $508,000. Arbitration hearings start Monday and last through Feb. 20. Freese is one of 15 arbitration-eligible players in the major leagues who has not signed.