The Baltimore Orioles have signed free-agent starting pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez to a four-year contract, according to multiple reports.
CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports the deal is worth $50 million.
The right-hander, who finished third in National League Cy Young voting in 2010, went 13-9 with a 3.30 ERA, 194 strikeouts and 80 walks in 182 2/3 innings with the Cleveland Indians last season.
After going 9-8 with a 2.88 ERA for the Colorado Rockies in 2010, Jimenez struggled in the first half of the 2011 season before being dealt to the Indians. The 30-year-old never dominated like he did in Colorado, but he showed flashes of brilliance down the stretch last September, going 4-0 with a 1.09 ERA in six starts for the Tribe.
The deal is pending a physical, and the team has not yet confirmed the news. But if the O’s complete the signing, they’ll forfeit the 17th overall pick in this spring’s draft because Jimenez declined Cleveland’s qualifying offer.
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