imageMILWAUKEE: Venezuelan ace closing relief pitcher Francisco Rodriguez has signed a two-year Major League Baseball contract worth $13 million to remain with the Milwaukee Brewers, the team said Thursday on its website.

The 33-year-old right-hander closed out 66 games last year, the most in the major leagues, and converted 44 of 49 save opportunities as well as going 5-5 with a 3.04 earned-run average.

Rodriguez, nicknamed "K-Rod" after the one-letter baseball scoring abbreviation for strikeout and the first letters of his last name, is a five-time All-Star and over 13 seasons is 46-41 with a 2.73 earned-run average.

His 348 career saves rank 10th on the all-time list and second among active pitchers only to Joe Nathan with 376.

Rodriguez re-signed with Milwaukee a year ago after having been traded to Baltimore during the 2013 campaign.

The Brewers hope Rodriguez can help them reach the playoffs for only the third time since losing the 1982 World Series in their only trip to Major League Baseball's best-of-seven championship final. Milwaukee lost in the first round to Philadelphia in 2008 and in 2011 beat Arizona only to fall to St. Louis in the National League finals.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2015

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