The Baltimore Orioles reached an agreement with starting
pitcher Jair Jurrjens earlier this offseason, but finalization of the deal was delayed over concerns of the right-hander’s injury issues. Baltimore and
Jurrjens were able to work through the problems, as the team finally announced the
deal yesterday.
Jurrjens came through the Braves system as a top prospect,
making his major league debut in 2007. The next season he started 31 games for
Atlanta, posting an ERA of 3.68 over 188 1/3 innings.
Jurrjens’ success continued, as he maintained season ERAs
south of 3.00 in two of the next three years. However, 2012 brought struggles
for the 27-year-old, as he was hit hard and finished the season with a 6.89
ERA. He was dealing with injuries, specifically to his knee, and the Orioles
are hoping he can get past this and return to the successful pitcher he was.
The initial agreement had Jurrjens making $1.5 million
guaranteed in 2013 with other potential incentives also included in the
contract. However, the Orioles announced that his new deal is of the minor league variety. Now he'll have to earn a spot in an Orioles rotation that already includes Jason Hammel, Wei-Yin
Chen, Chris Tillman and Miguel Gonzalez.
Follow @mlbinjurynews
Looking for fantasy baseball advice?
