The Pirates have worked out a deal to send catcher Jason Kendall to the Oakland A's for left-handed pitchers Mark Redman and Arthur Rhodes.

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"It's a done deal. It's just a matter of the A's players passing their physicals," said one high level source familiar with the negotiations.

Kendall, the highest salaried player in Pirates history, has $34 million remaining on the final three years of his contract. Some money will be exchanging hands, but in addition to receiving the pitchers, the Pirates will realize a net savings of about $15 million over the next three years that can be applied to other players.

Kendall, a former No. 1 draft pick, is the longest-tenured player on the roster and the franchise's all-time leader in games caught. He is the last holdover from the Cam Bonifay regime and the trade means the Pirates can rebuild.

The Pirates will get left-handed starter Redman, who went 11-12 with a 4.71 ERA, and left-handed reliever Rhodes, who was 3-3 with nine save and a 5.12 ERA.

Kendall, a 30-year-old California native, had a no-trade clause. His agent informed the Pirates general manager Dave Littlefield today that he would waive the clause to play for the A's, a person close to Kendall told the Associated Press, on condition of anonymity.

A career .306 hitter over nine seasons with Pittsburgh, Kendall has caught more games than any player in team history. The Pirates thought they had finalized a deal in January sending Kendall to the San Diego Padres for catcher Ramon Hernandez and third baseman Jeff Cirillo, but the trade fell through when Padres owner John Moores wouldn't approve it.

Kendall is due to make $10 million in 2005, $11 million in 2006 and $13 million in 2007, the final three seasons of the $60 million deal he signed just before the Pirates moved into PNC Park in 2001.

With more than one-fourth of their projected 2005 payroll committed only to Kendall, the Pirates have sought to trade him not only to add pitching help but to gain more financial flexibility. The trade would cut their payroll by nearly $20 million through 2007, though that could be reduced slightly if the Pirates agreed to take on more of Kendall's contract.

Kendall has talked repeatedly over the years of wanting to play his entire career with one team, something he envied Pirates Hall of Famers Roberto Clemente and Willie Stargell for doing. But the Pirates have finished as high as second in their division only once with Kendall in their lineup and he has obviously grow weary of the frequent losing in recent seasons.

If the Pirates finalize the trade, they likely would try to make a deal for a catcher since they do not consider backup Humberto Cota to be an everyday player and prospect J.R. House has been frequently injured during his minor league career.

Redman, 30, and Rhodes, 35, are both coming off sub-par seasons. Rhodes would give the Pirates a valuable second left-handed reliever to complement Mike Gonzalez, and Redman would stabilize a starting rotation that lost former No. 1 starter Kris Benson to the Mets in a late-season trade.

Redman was 14-9 with a 3.59 ERA for Florida in 2003 and is 48-51 in his career with Minnesota, Detroit, Florida and Oakland. Rhodes is 72-54 with 26 saves and a 4.48 career ERA since 1991 with Baltimore, Seattle and Oakland.