NEW YORK — The New York Mets received former MVP Mo Vaughn from the Anaheim Angels Thursday in trade for pitcher Kevin Appier.

        After several days of talks, agent Jeff Moorad and Mets general manager Steve Phillips worked out details to restructure Vaughn's contract, defering some of the money Vaughn would be paid to fit into the team's budget.

        “I don't think this whole thing has hit me yet,” Vaughn said. “I wish we could start tomorrow. I'm just a small piece in this big powerful puzzle.”

        Vaughn follows All-Star Roberto Alomar and leadoff hitter Roger Cedeno to New York. Free-agent slugger Juan Gonzalez, who, like Vaughn, is represented by Moorad, could be next.

        “We've been able to accomplish that in ways we didn't expect,” Phillips said of reviving the offense. “To add a hitter like Mo Vaughn wasn't something we anticipated going into the offseason.”

        The Mets and Angels agreed on the trade last weekend, contingent on New York being able to defer some of the money Vaughn would be paid.

        Vaughn was owed $50 million in salary and bonuses over the next three years but agreed to rework the contract. The Angels will pay the remaining $8 million of Vaughn's signing bonus and some of Vaughn's salary will be deferred each of the next three years.

        There will be a set payout schedule for the deferred money instead of an interest rate adjustment, a baseball source said on condition he not be identified. That part of the deal was signed off on by both the union and the commissioner's office.

        “If that has any bearing on helping us get any more key cogs to add to this machine, that's why we did it,” Vaughn said.

        Primary in that could be Gonzalez, whose first choice is to join the Mets. Moorad has talked to Phillips about Gonzalez since the beginning of the free-agent period. Alomar, Mike Piazza and Al Leiter have all expressed a desire for the team to sign Gonzalez.

        “Obviously these discussions with Mo gave us ample opportunity to talk about Juan, but for the better of both situations we put Juan discussions on hold,” Moorad said. “Juan made clear the Mets are a team he is very interested in. I told Steve we won't make a deal elsewhere until we take their temperature on Juan.”

        Vaughn also received increased no-trade protection, according to the source. He had been able to list six teams he would be willing to be traded to.

        Neither player waived the right to file a trade demand in the 15 days after next year's World Series.

        RANGERS:

        Free agent pitchers Hideki Irabu and Bill Pulsipher agreed to one-year deals with the team's Triple-A affiliate, Oklahoma of the Pacific Coast League. Terms were not released.

        Irabu, a right-hander, and Pulsipher, a left-hander, also have been invited to spring training in Florida as non-roster players.

        Because of injuries, Irabu made just 14 starts in two seasons with Montreal. This year he was 0-2 with a 4.86 ERA in three starts with the Expos.

        Pulsipher had no record and a 6.00 ERA in 37 relief appearances with Boston and the Chicago White Sox in 2001.

        PADRES:

        Reliever Alan Embree agreed to a one-year contract, giving San Diego a veteran setup man to fill in while relievers Kevin Walker and Tom Davey recover from arm surgeries.

        Embree, 31, has pitched eight seasons in the majors, with Cleveland, Atlanta, Arizona, San Francisco and the Chicago White Sox. The left-hander was a combined 1-4 with a 7.33 ERA in 61 appearances for the Giants and White Sox in 2001, striking out 59 in 54 innings.

        CONTRACTION:

        The hearing on the grievance by players to stop contraction is tentatively scheduled to continue Jan.3-4 and Jan.10-11, Michael Weiner, associate general counsel for the players union, said.

        Major League Baseball is seeking to reduce its teams from 30 to 28, with Minnesota and Montreal likely to be the two eliminated. The sides were close an agreement not to eliminate teams in 2002 when talks broke down Dec.13.

        Lawyers for the Twins and Major League Baseball on Thursday asked the Minnesota Court of Appeals to overturn an injunction that requires the Twins to honor their lease at the Metrodome, which expires after next season.

        RED SOX:

        Team owners refused to turn over documents detailing offers made to buy the team. Massachusetts attorney general Tom Reilly would not say if he will subpoena the bids, but said the owners' refusal raises questions as to why they sold the team for a reported $90 million less than the highest bid.

        That discrepancy will shortchange by $50 million homeless shelters, hospitals and other charities designated to benefit from the Yawkey Trust, the team's outgoing majority owner, Reilly said. “One way or the other, we will get these documents,” he said.

Vaughn, Mets complete deal

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