An 11th-hour pickup of reliever Jorge Sosa finished St. Louis' moves before the non-waiver trading deadline. The Cardinals sent Triple-A right-hander Rich Scalamandre to Atlanta in exchange for Sosa, who has struggled through a rough year after an outstanding 2005.

That move followed the Sunday acquisition of second baseman Ronnie Belliard, and the early-July pickup of right-handed starter Jeff Weaver. St. Louis would still like to add an impact outfielder, but the pickings got slimmer at 3 p.m. CT on Monday. From here until the end of the season, any traded player must be waived first.

Sosa is a hard thrower, reaching the mid-90s with his fastball, and he complements it with a slider. He's struggled this year, but in 2005 he was one of the biggest surprises in the National League. Sosa was designated for assignment by the Braves on Sunday.

"We didn't think he would be available," said general manager Walt Jocketty. "But when he was designated, we were interested."

The Cards believe that Sosa will benefit from mechanical tweaking, and they expect him to be a significant member of their bullpen. He has started and relieved in his career, and even spent a brief period of time closing games for Atlanta this year.

If all the moves work out, the Cardinals have bolstered three areas of concern, at least in the short term. Only Belliard would seem to be close to a sure thing, however. And that was the move in which the Redbirds had to give up the most -- sending promising third-year infielder Hector Luna to Cleveland.

"If you're going to improve your club," Jocketty said, "you have to trade something. You generally have to give up guys that you would control longer than the guys you acquire."

St. Louis moved to solidify its starting rotation in early July, adding Weaver from the Angels in exchange for outfield prospect Terry Evans. Sidney Ponson was jettisoned soon after to make room for Weaver, providing what the club hopes will prove to be an upgrade.

Evans has enjoyed a breakout year in 2006, but neither he nor Scalamandre is considered a top prospect. In that regard, the Cardinals stuck to one of their goals. They did not gut their farm system, which is on the rebuild, in order to make minor additions at the big league level.

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"We didn't want to tear apart our entire farm system," said the GM. "We have a good team now."

Moreover, if recent history is any indication, the Redbirds are not necessarily finished. August dealing is plenty familiar to Jocketty and his staff. The Cardinals have pulled off two of the more influential waiver trades of recent years, bringing in Woody Williams for Ray Lankford in 2001 and acquiring Larry Walker from the Rockies for prospects in 2004.

A repeat is far from a guarantee, but Jocketty indicated as the days wound down that his pursuits might continue into the year's eighth month. Veteran outfielders such as Shawn Green and Luis Gonzalez, both of whom have been connected in reports to St. Louis, would likely clear waivers if the Diamondbacks wanted to trade one of them.

In the meantime, impressive rookie Chris Duncan will continue to receive plenty of at-bats in left field. Duncan has hit for solid power and average and has even picked up his plate discipline in recent weeks. Duncan's emergence made it easier for the front office to swallow not adding an outfielder.

Left-handed relief is another facet of the club that might benefit from an addition, but Jocketty expressed confidence in Randy Flores and Tyler Johnson. Of the lefties who interested St. Louis, most stayed put.