ST. LOUIS -- Jason Isringhausen feels a little like the last man standing, as one longtime Cardinal after another left over the offseason. With the departures of David Eckstein, Scott Rolen and Jim Edmonds, Isringhausen has the second-longest continuous tenure of any current Cardinal.

But Isringhausen has no intentions of being the next one out the door.

"I'm at the point in my career now where I have the power to say yes or no [to potential trades]," he said on Saturday at the Cardinals' annual Winter Warm-Up. "I already said no once, so I'm going to do it again if I have to. As long as I do my job, I'll be happy. I want to stay here."

Isringhausen has enjoyed a winter free of rehabilitation, with no shoulder or hip or other injury to tend to. He's been able to relax a bit, and to make sure his whole body will be in shape for the '08 season.

"I've been able to do what I want, and work on cardio [rather] than rehab," he said. "That's been my biggest problem the last few years. I wasn't able to do the cardio and get in the shape I wanted to be in. I can do that now. I fizzled out at the end of the year last year a little bit. That won't happen this year."

Another change for Isringhausen is that the notion of retirement seems a little more distant than it might have at times in recent years. When injuries racked his body in 2006, Isringhausen acknowledged that he might be nearing the end of the line.

Following a healthy and effective '07, though, he's in no hurry to hang it up.

"I don't put a timetable on anything," he said when asked how many years he has left. "I did that a couple years ago. After last year, I feel stronger this year. I'm going to go one year at a time now.

"I'm happy. I feel as good as I did when I was 25. I probably feel better now. I've gotten everything fixed. The way these owners like to spend money, I might as well stick around for a while."

Welcome aboard: Troy Glaus got his first taste of St. Louis baseball fanaticism with his arrival at the Winter Warm-Up. In addition to signing autographs for two hours, Glaus received an on-stage introduction to his new fans.

"It was a first," he said. "I've talked to some friends of mine who have been around here, and they explained the city and how passionate everybody is about their baseball. But I don't think you could do that justice. To see that, it was fantastic."

He also revealed his new jersey number, since his lifelong number wasn't really an option. Glaus has been identified with No. 25, which hasn't been worn in St. Louis since Mark McGwire's retirement after the 2001 season. Instead, he'll don No. 8, last worn by hitting coach Hal McRae.

"I've been 25 my entire career," he said. "I've known Mark a long time, and he's an icon in this city. I wasn't going to do that. That was an easy decision. Growing up, Cal Ripken was one of my favorite players, and No. 8 was available.

"My wife and I were driving to the airport to come here, and we just kind of made a decision that OK, we're going to go with that. We'll see where it goes. It's a big change for me. It might not seem real big for everybody else, but it's been 12, 13 years since I've worn a different number."

Wellemeyer hopes to settle: Todd Wellemeyer's agent and the Cardinals exchanged arbitration figures on Friday, but Wellemeyer would strongly prefer not to go to arbitration. He'd just as soon get a contract done before that point comes.

"I took a look at everybody's numbers today, and I'm right in the ballpark of the other guys," Wellemeyer said. "I'm not trying to get them on for any extra. My agent knows the numbers better than I do. I'm going to trust him in getting a fair deal.

"I don't want to go to a hearing. That's going to be a waste of time."

New coach? The Cardinals are in the process of finding a position on their staff for former Major Leaguer Mike Aldrete. Manager Tony La Russa acknowledged that Aldrete is expected to join the club, but the exact role is unclear. Aldrete will work with hitters in some capacity, though not as the club's hitting coach. The 46-year-old, who played for La Russa in Oakland, was Glaus' hitting coach in Arizona in 2005.