Flushing, NY (My Sportsbook) - The New York Mets, who signed All-Star pitcher Tom Glavine as a free agent in early December, have inked his younger brother -- first baseman Mike Glavine -- to a minor league deal.

The 30-year-old Mike Glavine played 23 games at the Triple-A level at Richmond in 2001 and hit .136 with four RBI. Last season, he batted .273 with 21 homers and 66 RBI in 125 contests for the Somerset Patriots of the Independent Atlantic League.

The Mets also announced Brett Butler, who played 17 years in the majors, will join the organization as a part-time minor league outfield and base-running instructor. Butler was a spring training instructor with the Los Angeles Dodgers last year. During the 2003 season he will spend a week each month with the Mets minor league teams.

Since his retirement in 1997, Butler has undergone two shoulder surgeries. He was a motivational speaker and a baseball coach at the Greater Atlanta Christian School. He was diagnosed with throat cancer in 1996, but returned to the Dodgers later that season before retiring.

"Over the last two years I started getting the bug again," said Butler. "I'm fully committed to baseball and it is my long range goal to return to coach and maybe even manage in the major leagues."