PHILADELPHIA – The Philadelphia Phillies bolstered their starting rotation, acquiring 43-year-old left-hander Jamie Moyer from the Seattle Mariners for two minor leaguers on Saturday night.
Moyer was 6-12 with a 4.39 ERA for the Mariners. He’s expected to start for the Phillies on Tuesday against the Chicago Cubs. Philadelphia has played well since overhauling its roster before last month’s trade deadline, and is 21/2 games behind NL wild-card leading Cincinnati.
The Phillies sent right-handed pitchers Andrew Baldwin and Andrew Barb to the Mariners for Moyer, who is making $5.5 million this season. Philadelphia also gets cash in the deal.
“This guy is a good player and he’s done a good job here for a number of years,” Mariners general manager Bill Bavasi said. “A lot of people in this organization have a lot of fond memories of what he’s done here. He’s meant a lot to this franchise. But you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.”
Moyer wasn’t immediately available for comment because he wasn’t with the Mariners in Los Angeles for their game against the Angels. A team spokesman said Moyer was in Seattle for personal reasons. Phillies general manager Pat Gillick is familiar with Moyer because he held the same position in Seattle from 2000-03.
Moyer will replace rookie right-hander Scott Mathieson, who has struggled since the Phillies called him up from Double-A Reading. Mathieson is 1-4 with a 7.23 ERA in eight games. He didn’t reach the fifth inning in four of his seven starts.
Meanwhile, Moyer has pitched at least six innings in 20 of his 25 starts. He had the second-lowest run support in the majors at 3.5 runs per game, and the Mariners didn’t score a run while he was in the game in four of his last nine outings.
A native of nearby Souderton, Pa., Moyer began his career with the Cubs in 1986. He’s 211-164 with a 4.17 ERA in 563 career games for the Cubs, Rangers, Cardinals, Orioles, Red Sox and Mariners.
Moyer joined the Mariners on July 30, 1996 in a trade with Boston for outfielder Darren Bragg. He went 145-87 with a 3.97 ERA in 324 games (323 starts) with the Mariners and is the franchise leader in wins, starts and innings pitched. He is the only Seattle pitcher to win 20 or more games more than once.
Moyer went to one All-Star game (2003) and pitched in the playoffs twice (1997 and 2001).
The Phillies (60-62) are 13-8 since trading two-time All-Star right fielder Bobby Abreu and starting pitcher Cory Lidle to the New York Yankees on July 30. They also dealt starting third baseman David Bell, backup catcher Sal Fasano and relievers Rheal Cormier and Ryan Franklin in the past month.
Baldwin was 8-8 with a 4.04 ERA at Single-A Clearwater. Barb was 6-2 with a 2.23 ERA and 18 saves at Class-A Lakewood.
“We feel we have good information on these guys and we ended up making a fair deal,” Bavasi said. “We’re happy with the guys that we got and the Phillies are happy with getting Jamie over there.”
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