"Before leaving baseball's winter meetings at the Hilton Anatole Hotel on Thursday afternoon, Milwaukee Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said he expected to sign a shortstop soon.

He wasn't kidding.

Melvin barely had gotten to the airport when news leaked that he had reached agreement with veteran free-agent shortstop Alex Gonzalez on a one-year deal with a vesting option for 2013. Gonzalez will be 35 in February.

Because Gonzalez must pass a physical exam to make the deal official, the Brewers did not confirm it. He is traveling from Venezuela for the physical, so it probably won't be announced before Monday.

"We're not there yet, but it's a good possibility," Melvin said."