LAS VEGAS — In a conference call with reporters the day his deal was completed with the St. Louis Cardinals, lefty reliever Trever Miller only alluded to the fact that he would have to reclaim the original value of his contract by pitching for it. He said it was up to him to make the deal worth $2 million.

It will take him 70 appearances to get there.

The tear the Cardinals discovered in Miller’s left shoulder during a physical in St. Louis last month reduced the deal from two years to one and it reduced the base salary from $2 million to it’s current value: $500,000 guaranteed for 2009. Miller will get a bonus for every clump of five games he appears in beyond 40. Those bonuses run from $200,000 when he reaches 40 games and surpasses 45 games and climbs to $225,000 for 60 and 65 games and, finally, $230,000 for 70 games.

Miller, according to the language in the contract, would also get a $100,000 bonus for the Rolaids Relief Man award and $50,000 for finishing second or $25,000 for third.

Miller, 35, received a $400,000 buyout from Tampa Bay after the World Series on what would have been a $2-million option for the 2009 season. He was paid $1.6 million for this past season. The Rays have indicated that they saw nothing wrong with Miller’s shoulder — certainly nothing that would have led to them buying out his option for that reason. Miller described the tear as nothing significant insisting that he’s probably been pitching through it and that the shoulder hasn’t caused him any problems.

The Cardinals obviously saw the injury as significant enough to severely reduce the guarantee.

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San Diego Padres general manager Kevin Towers confirmed that the list of players he has to choose from with the Cardinals has two pitchers and one position players, all minor-leaguers. I asked if he wanted to use spring training to scout a few players — say, in major-league exhibition games — and he said that is partially true. He also wanted some flexibility depending on how the Padres emerge from these meetings. If the Jake Peavy deal (or another trade) replenishes their bullpen depth then he may look to the Cardinals for a position player.

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