Padres Agree to Terms with Shawn Estes

The San Diego Padres today agreed to terms with left-handed pitcher Shawn Estes on a one-year contract. Executive Vice President/General Manager Kevin Towers made the announcement. Estes, 32, went 7-8 with a 4.80 ERA (66 ER/123.2 IP) with two complete games in 21 starts for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2005. He was limited to 21 starts, his lowest total since 1996, after suffering a stress reaction in his left ankle July 5 at St. Louis. Over parts of 11 Major League seasons with the San Francisco Giants (1995-2001), New York Mets (2002), Cincinnati Reds (2002), Chicago Cubs (2003), Colorado Rockies (2004) and Diamondbacks (2005), Estes has a career record of 99-89 with a 4.71 ERA (853 ER/1628.2 IP) in 273 games (272 starts). Estes, who won a career-high 19 games with the Giants in 1997, ranks among active leaders by a left-handed pitcher in wins (99; 13th), complete games (14; 13th), shutouts (eight; tied for ninth) and strikeouts (1,187; 12th).