Veteran Catcher Ramon Hernandez signs two-year deal with Colorado Rockies -MLB Update
Now former Cincinnati catcher, Ramon Hernandez, who became a free agent after playing three consecutive season with the Reds, agreed on mutual terms and signed a two-year deal with the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday, November 30, 2011, according to multiple
reports by various news agencies around the country.
The financial terms and conditions of the deal were not officially revealed by the team or the player but are believed to be around the $6.5 million region, which would be giving him a cool $2.25 million annually.
Being one of the most experienced athletes in the league with a great playing ability, the Rockies believe that Hernandez will be able to provide the team with the much needed pitching power they had been looking for after completing the 2011 Major League
Baseball (MLB).
"He's young, he has a power arm, he's a tremendous athlete, and from what we have gathered, he's ultra-competitive," Rockies general manager, Dan O'Dowd said. "We're not looking at his numbers because of his age and where he was at when he reached the big
league level.”
Since Hernandez is leaving as a free agent and signed on to another team, the Cincinnati Red will be getting a supplemental first-round pick in the 2012 MLB Entry Draft next year which is due to the newly implemented Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
The CBA also gave leverage to the Rockies who signed Hernandez as the player was changed from a Type A free agent to a Type B one, allowing them to negotiate in a more flexible way than would have been possible prior to the agreement being introduced.
The Reds are also believed to not have offered the veteran player arbitration and rather opt for searching the free agent market since he would have received a bigger amount in the process instead of the one Cincinnati was looking forward to.
It will be interesting to see how Ramon Hernandez will make a difference on the Colorado Rockies team in regards to their performance and game play strategies with the addition of much needed experience and veteran leadership.
As the offseason progresses, more trades and signings are expected in the upcoming days.
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