Angels acquire INF Josh Rutledge from Colorado
Club sends RHP Jairo Diaz to the Rockies
SAN DIEGO, CA -- The Angels today acquired INF Josh Rutledge from the Colorado Rockies in exchange for RHP Jairo Diaz. Today's announcement was made by General Manager Jerry Dipoto.
Rutledge, 25, has appeared in the Majors with Colorado since 2012. He batted .269 (83/309) with four home runs and 33 RBI over a career-high 105 games in 2014 with the Rockies. Rutledge also set career-bests in at-bats (309), hits (83), triples (7) and on-base pct. (.323). He made starts at shortstop (58), second base (12) and third base (5) during the 2014 campaign and has logged a .961 fielding pct. (544 TC/21 E) during his three campaigns in the Majors.
Rutledge made his MLB debut on July 13, 2012 after being called up to play shortstop while Troy Tulowitzki was on the disabled list. The infielder finished his first MLB campaign batting .274 (76/277) with eight home runs and 37 RBI.
The native of Birmingham, AL was originally selected by Colorado in the third round of the 2010 Amateur Draft. Rutledge played collegiately at the University of Alabama, leading the team in batting average as a freshman (.369) and earning All-SEC First Team honors the following season.
The 6'1'' 190-pounder prepped at Cullman High School (AL) and helped guide the team to the Class 5A state championship during his junior and senior campaigns (won the title as a senior in 2007). Rutledge was named as the 2007 5A Player of the Year by the Alabama Sports Writers Association.
Diaz, 23, appeared at three different levels of the Angels organization this year, pitching for Single-A Inland Empire, Double-A Arkansas and the Angels. The right-hander began the season in Single-A, posting a 2-3 record with four saves and a 4.78 ERA (32 IP - 17 ER) in 29 games before his promotion to Double-A on June 24. Over his final 27 games at the minor league level, Diaz registered a 2-1 record with 11 saves and a 2.20 ERA (32.2 IP - 8 ER). The Venezuelan native was called up to the Angels on Sept. 8 and made his Major League debut that afternoon, tossing a scoreless inning in relief in Cleveland. Overall, Diaz went 0-0 with a 3.18 ERA (5.2 IP - 2 ER) in five games with the Halos.