The Rockies have signed 49-year old lefty starting Jamie Moyer to a minor league deal. Moyer missed all of last season due to Tommy John Surgery that he had in 2010. He last pitched in the majors for the Phillies in 2009. He pitched in 19 games (all starts) for the Phillies in 2009 and he was 9-9 with a 4.84 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP. Moyer has now pitched in 686 games (628 starts) in his first 24 years in the majors and he is 267-204 with a 4.24 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. This was a decent signing for the Rockies as Moyer always seems to rise when people write him off.

The Rockies have sent 27-year old righty starting pitcher Kevin Slowey to the Cleveland Indians for 24-year old righty reliever Zach Putnam. Slowey was acquired earlier this winter in a deal with the Twins, so he didn’t get a chance to pitch for the Rockies. Putnam pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Indians last year (his first taste of the majors) and he was 1-1 with a 6.14 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. He also pitched in 44 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last year and he was 6-3 with 9 saves, a 3.65 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. With all of the other additions to the starting rotation this winter, Slowey became expendable and the Rockies got a pitcher in Putnam that could help them in the bullpen.

The Rockies have acquired 36-year old righty swinging 2B/SS Marco Scutaro from the Red Sox for 26-year old righty starter/reliever Clayton Mortensen. Scutaro played in 113 games for the Red Sox last year and he was 118 of 395 (.299 avg, .781 OPS) with 59 runs scored, 7 homers, 54 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. He has now played in 1,103 games in his first 10 years in the majors and he is 1,019 of 3,768 (.270 avg, .727 OPS) with 538 runs scored, 68 homers, 404 RBIs and 44 stolen bases. Scutaro will take over as the Rockies’ starting 2B in 2012. Clayton Mortensen pitched in 16 games (6 starts) for the Rockies last year (his only season with the team) and he was 2-4 with a 3.86 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Mortensen was little more than an extra piece on the Rockies’ pitching staff, so I really like this deal for them as Scutaro will give the team some zip near the top of the batting order in 2012.

The Rockies have dealt 29-year old lefty swinging outfielder Seth Smith to the A’s for 28-year old righty starting pitcher Guillermo Moscoso and 27-year old lefty starter/reliever Josh Outman. Smith played in 147 games for the Rockies last year and he was 135 of 476 (.284 avg, .830 OPS) with 67 runs scored, 15 homers, 59 RBIs and 10 stolen bases. He played in 487 games in his five years with the Rockies and he was 354 of 1,285 (.275 avg, .833 OPS) with 200 runs scored, 51 homers, 181 RBIs and 17 stolen bases. The signing of Michael Cuddyer and the acquisition of Tyler Colvin pretty much made Smith expendable.

Guillermo Moscoso will move right into the Rockies’ rotation for 2012. He pitched in 23 games (21 starts) for the A’s last year and he was 8-10 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. Moscoso only gave up 102 hits in 128 innings for the A’s last year as he was missing a lot of bats last year. Moscoso has now pitched in 33 games (25 starts) in his first three years in the majors and he is 8-10 with a 3.47 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP. Lefty Josh Outman will likely start his career in the bullpen for the Rockies. He pitched in 13 games (9 starts) for the A’s last year and he was 3-5 with a 3.70 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP. Outman has now pitched in 33 games (25 starts) in his first three years in the majors and he is 8-8 with a 3.75 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP.

I really like this deal for the Rockies as Seth Smith wasn’t going to play much for them if he stuck around. The Rockies got two pretty nice pitchers in return for Smith as Moscoso and Outman have nice upsides.

The Colorado Rockies have underwent a lot of change since last September and a lot of it is positive. Here is a look at the new guys for 2012:

In the field: The Rockies could have four new starters in 2012 in the field. Ramon Hernandez is the likely starting catcher for the Rockies and he should love playing at Coors Field. Michael Cuddyer will be the new RF for the Rockies in 2012. He is a very solid middle of the order hitter who will give the Rockies more thump from the right side. 3B Casey Blake will get a shot to compete for the starting job in spring training. If he can stay healthy, he will be an asset to the Rockies with a bat in his hands. D.J. LeMahieu will have a good shot of winning the starting job at 2B as he came over in the Ian Stewart deal with the Cubs. Brandon Wood and Brendan Harris will try to win backup job on the infield. Tyler Colvin will likely be the Rockies’ #4 outfielder in 2012.

On the mound: The Rockies acquired righty starting pitchers Kevin Slowey and Tyler Chatwood in separate deals over the winter. I look for both of them to be in the Rockies’ opening day rotation in 2012. Chatwood has a nice upside.

Overall: The Rockies went out and made some changes, but, most of them look like good ones to me. Hernandez, LeMahieu, Blake and Cuddyer should add some zip to the Rockies batting order in 2012. I also like the additions of Chatwood and Slowey as the Rockies needed more help in the starting rotation for 2012 and beyond.