The Colorado Rockies buy out the arbitration years of catcher Chris Iannetta:

The Rockies agreed in principle on a multiyear deal Thursday with a catcher — but it wasn’t Yorvit Torrealba. The Rockies agreed to a three-year, $8.3 million contract with Chris Iannetta with a $5 million club option for his first year of free agency.

Chris doesn’t hit much, but still sports an excellent OBP. He’ll play 2010 as a 27-year-old, which means the Rockies get his prime years at a bargain price. The Rockies have done a good job this decade of capturing the best years of their hitters cheaply by delaying their ascension to the majors, then signing them to long term contracts to avoid arbitration surprises.