Major League Baseball

Sources: Rockies claim Astros starter

Published Aug. 23, 2011 1:00 a.m. ET

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Ken Rosenthal

The Astros could be getting ready to dump another salary - or not.

The Rockies have claimed Astros left-hander Wandy Rodriguez on waivers, according to major-league sources.

The Astros can negotiate a trade with the Rockies, dump his contract on Colorado or pull him back and keep him.

The deadline for an outcome is 1 p.m. ET on Thursday.

Rodriguez, 32, is owed slightly more than $1 million for the rest of this season, $10 million in 2012 and $13 million in 2013.

His $13 million club option for 2014 becomes a player option if he is sent to another club either through a trade or claim. He will receive a $2.5 million buyout if his option is not exercised.

The Rockies, thanks to the player option, are risking the inheritance of a $36 million commitment to Rodriguez from '12 to '14. The team might reason, however, that Rodriguez would receive a comparable amount if he were a free agent. The Dodgers signed lefty Ted Lilly to a three-year, $33 million free-agent contract last offseason.

Still, the Astros might not want to move Rodriguez. Their trades of outfielders Hunter Pence and Michael Bourn reduced their commitments for next season to $47.2 million, including Rodriguez's $10 million, according to Cot's Baseball Contracts.

The team's new ownership, which has yet to be approved, wants to reduce the payroll to about $60 million, sources say. The Astros could hit that number comfortably even if they retain Rodriguez. Without him, their rotation would be extremely thin.

Rodriguez is 9-9 with a 3.31 ERA for the Astros, who own the worst record in the majors.

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