LAS VEGAS – Francisco Rodriguez became the first top-tier free agent to reach an agreement when he decided to join the New York Mets, and Kerry Wood was on the verge of striking a deal with the Cleveland Indians at the winter meetings.

Coming off a record 62 saves for the Los Angeles Angels, Rodriguez reached a preliminary agreement Tuesday on a $37 million, three-year contract with the Mets, desperate for bullpen help. The sides still have to work out a written agreement and the pitcher must pass a physical, two people familiar with the negotiations said Tuesday. They spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the contract had not yet been completed.

“He’s pretty special,” said Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre, familiar with K-Rod from his days managing the New York Yankees. “You got tired of looking at him in October. I mean, he had a lot of success against us and he’s certainly that dominant guy out there, and he’s very durable.”

Rodriguez’s deal is unlikely to be finalized before next week. The Mets wouldn’t comment publicly on it.

“K-Rod’s got very good stuff and he knows how to pitch,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “How a guy reacts in a situation, you never know, but you would think that he’ll continue to be very successful.”

Cleveland was closing in on a two-year contract with Wood, the former Chicago Cubs starter-turned-reliever, a person familiar with that deal said on condition of anonymity because the sides still were working through details. Wood, who has had numerous injury problems in the past, also needs to pass a physical before the deal can be completed.

Other high-profile free agents are taking longer to determine their market value. A.J. Burnett and Derek Lowe likely will wait for CC Sabathia to make a decision. Mark Teixeira and Manny Ramirez also could become lengthy negotiations.

“We’re just waiting to see what happens with Teixeira and Sabathia,” Los Angeles Angels manager Mike Scioscia said, strolling casually through the Bellagio lobby.

In the second trade of the four-day session, the Cincinnati Reds acquired catcher Ramon Hernandez and cash from the Baltimore Orioles for utility man Ryan Freel and two minor leaguers.

“Ramon is a guy we put high on our list and stayed with it,” Reds general manager Walt Jocketty said. “We set our offseason objectives and one of the big things for us was to try to acquire a quality catcher. We felt there was something that we were lacking last year.”

The Dodgers reached a $17.5 million, three-year agreement with third baseman Casey Blake and a preliminary one-year deal with infielder Mark Loretta, pending a physical.

AP Baseball Writer Mike Fitzpatrick, AP Sports Writer Janie McCauley and AP Sports Writer Tom Withers in Cleveland contributed to this report