Loaiza, 46, ex-all-star pitcher, arrested on drug traffic charge

Former All-star pitcher Esteban Loaiza was arrested on suspicion of trafficking drugs after packages containing a white powder believed to be cocaine were found at a home he rented in Southern California, officials said.

Loaiza, 46, was booked Friday on charges involving the possession, transport and sale of 44 pounds of suspected cocaine worth an estimated $500,000, the San Diego Sheriff’s Department said.

Loaiza played for eight major league teams between 1995 and 2008, starting with Pittsburgh and concluding with a second stint with the Chicago White Sox, going 126-114 with a 4.65 ERA.

He went 21-9 with the White Sox in 2003 and started the All-star Game that year.

Obit: Wally Moon, the 1954 National League Rookie of the Year who played on three World Series-winning teams with the

Los Angeles Dodgers, died Friday at his Bryan, Texas, home. He was 87. Moon, a two-time Allstar outfielder, batted .289 in 12 major league seasons.

Pirates: Ana Isabel Soto, 72, the mother of catcher Elias Diaz, was rescued by Venezuelan police three days after she was kidnapped, authorities said. A police anti-drug team is being investigated for alleged involvement in the kidnapping, Zulia state Gov. Omar Prieto said.

Cardinals: Right-hander Bud Norris, 32, agreed to a one-year, $3 million deal, pending a physical, with St. Louis. He has a 4.49 ERA in nine seasons with six major league teams, including a 4.21 ERA with 74 strikeouts in 62 innings last year for the Los Angeles Angels.

Blue Jays: Roy Halladay, a six-time All-star pitcher with Toronto, will have his No. 32 retired before the Blue Jays’ March 29 season opener. Halladay died Nov. 7 at 40 in a plane crash.