The AL West-leading Texas Rangers are getting some needed help for their bullpen.
Texas acquired reliever Koji Uehara from the Orioles on Saturday, sending right-hander Tommy Hunter and infielder Chris Davis going to Baltimore. The Rangers also get cash in the deal a day before the non-waiver trade deadline.
Both teams announced the deal Saturday night.
Uehara is 1-1 with a 1.72 ERA in 43 appearances for Baltimore, primarily in an eighth-inning role.
Hunter injured his groin after being named to the Texas rotation the last week of spring training. He has a 2.93 ERA in eight games since returning as a reliever July 1.
Davis is hitting .250 with three home runs and six RBIs in 28 games.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.
The AL West-leading Texas Rangers are getting some needed help for their bullpen.
A person with knowledge of the deal said Saturday that Texas agreed to acquire reliever Koji Uehara from the Orioles, with right-hander Tommy Hunter and infielder Chris Davis going to Baltimore. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because some final details were still being worked out a day before the non-waiver trade deadline.
Uehara is 1-1 with a 1.72 ERA in 43 appearances for Baltimore, primarily in an eighth-inning role. The right-hander has a shutout streak of 15 innings in 13 outings since June 19 at Washington.
The 36-year-old Uehara is in his third season in the majors after a successful 10-year run with the Yomiuri Giants. He is 4-7 with 13 saves and a 3.03 ERA in 98 games for the Orioles.
Uehara became Baltimore’s first Japanese player when he signed a $10 million, two-year contract with the Orioles in January 2009. He has an incentive-laden $3 million contract for this season, with a $4 million option for 2012 that kicks in if Uehara pitches in 12 more games this season.
Texas (61-47), which went to its first World Series last season, leads the Los Angeles Angels by two games in the AL West.
But the Rangers bullpen has an AL-high 19 losses along with 15 blown saves.
Closer Neftali Feliz has converted 21 of 26 saves, but Rangers manager Ron Washington said this week after a blown save that he wanted to see more fire from the hard-throwing right-hander who last season set a major league rookie record with 40 saves.
Frank Francisco, who had been a setup reliever for the Rangers, was traded during the offseason to Toronto for Mike Napoli.
Hunter injured his groin on the same day he was named to the Texas rotation the last week of spring training and started the season on the disabled list. He returned July 1 as a reliever, and had a 2.93 ERA in 15 1-3 innings over eight appearances.
Texas got Hunter in as a supplemental pick after the first round of the 2007 draft. He was 13-4 with a 3.73 ERA in 23 games (22 starts) for Texas last season, and started Game 4 of the World Series.
Davis, a fifth-round pick in 2006, was hitting .250 with three home runs and six RBIs in 28 games over three stints this season for Texas. He hit 24 home runs in 48 games at Triple-A Round Rock.
Uehara struck out two batters in a scoreless eighth inning against the New York Yankees on Friday night. He didn’t pitch in the first game of day-night doubleheader Saturday.
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AP Sports Writer Mike Fitzpatrick contributed to this report from New York.
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