The Baltimore Orioles have agreed to send starting pitcher Jeremy Guthrie to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for Jason Hammel and Matt Lindstrom, MLB.com reported.
Guthrie, who was in arbitration hearings with the Orioles, will sign a one-year, $8.2 million deal with the Rockies and become a free-agent after the 2012 season, the report said.
The trade is yet another acquisition for the Rockies, in an offseason that has been anything but rest for GM Dan O’Dowd. “Dealin’ Dan” has been reloading the roster, shipping out homegrown players in an attempt to find a way to win in the mediocre NL West.
Guthrie had been the staff ace for the Orioles, working 208 innings last season while posting a 4.33 ERA. His 9-17 record in 32 starts was the high mark for losses in the American League last season.
[pullquote]”Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Baltimore anymore,” Guthrie tweeted on his official Twitter account.[/pullquote]
“Jeremy is excited to join the Rockies, and I see this as a positive result for all parties,” Guthrie’s agent, Brodie Van Wagenen, said in a statement. “Jeremy is excited about a fresh start with a new organization and a contending team close to home.”
Guthrie, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, will be able to play closer to his family that lives in American Fork. He will be able to provide ward information for the area to one of the incoming pitchers, Matt Lindstrom, who is also a member of the LDS Church.
Reaction to the trade has been mixed from both the Orioles and Rockies media bases. Most sources agree that the change of scenery will benefit Guthrie, who has spent the past five seasons pitching against some of the best players in the league while in the AL East.
Guthrie also announced the trade over Twitter, saying, “Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Baltimore anymore. Just found out I was traded to@Rockies #MLB #Rocktober.”
Guthrie was raised in Ashland, Oregon, and served a mission to Spain. He attended Brigham Young University before transferring to Stanford and beginning his collegiate pitching career there. He was drafted in the first round by the Cleveland Indians, before being claimed off waivers by Baltimore in 2007.
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