UPDATE: That was quick. Baltimore has re-signed Izturis to a one-year deal worth $1.5 million in base salary, so he’ll go from starting shortstop to backing up Hardy and second baseman Brian Roberts.
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Yesterday the Orioles made a shrewd move to address their hole at shortstop, sending a pair of minor-league relievers to the Twins for J.J. Hardy, but that apparently won’t stop them from trying to re-sign 2010 starter Cesar Izturis as a utility man.
Along with Hardy the Orioles also acquired a potential utility man from the Twins in Brendan Harris, but according to Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail “didn’t totally close the door on re-signing Izturis despite Harris’ inclusion in the trade.”
Of course, while Izturis and Harris would both technically be “utility men” in that they’d each be backup infielders, they’re completely different players. Izturis is a Gold Glove-caliber shortstop with good speed and a weak bat, while Harris lacks the range to be a regular at shortstop or second base, isn’t useful for much behind platooning versus left-handed pitching, and was included in the deal solely because the Twins wanted to dump his salary.