Rockies agree two-year deal with Chris Iannetta

Catcher Chris Iannetta and the Colorado Rockies have agreed to a two-year deal. A fourth-round pick by Colorado in 2004, Iannetta spent parts of six seasons with the team before being traded to the Los Angeles Angels on Nov. 30, 2011, for pitcher Tyler Chatwood. Iannetta was with the Angels for four seasons. He signed with Seattle for the 2016 season.

Iannetta is coming off his most productive offensive season in years. With the Diamondbacks, he hit .254 with 17 homers, 43 RBIs and a .354 on-base percentage, and team coaches and executives credited him with helping lead and turn around the club’s pitching staff.

“He was a big piece to what we did this year, no doubt about it,” General Manager Mike Hazen said. “We’re going to have to work to continue to add to the roster. I think we have some very capable catchers now and we’ll have to find ways to continue to supplement the roster.”

Iannetta signed with the Diamondbacks in January for $1.5 million, and he teamed with Jeff Mathis and Chris Herrmann for a sort of three-headed catching group.

The move seems to put an end to Colorado’s relationship with Lucroy, which began at last year’s trading deadline. Lucroy made a noticeable impact on Colorado’s rookie-laden pitching staff but will apparently not return in 2018.

The work that Lucroy did behind the plate to grow Colorado’s young rotation will now be passed along to Iannetta, who spent six years with the Rockies from 2006-2011. During that time, he averaged .235 and belted a total of 63 home runs while driving in 236 RBI. His best season for the Rockies came in 2008 when he hit .264 with 18 homers and 65 RBI.

At the age of 35 (his birthday is April 8) next season, Iannetta will likely see the majority of playing time but this also opens the door for Tony Wolters and perhaps Tom Murphy to see additional innings behind the plate.