Less than a month after signing John Axford to a minor-league contract the Rockies have added him to the 40-man roster, guaranteeing the veteran reliever’s $2.6 million salary for this season.
Based on the quick move it seems likely that the Rockies all but assured Axford he’d make the Opening Day roster and the non-guaranteed nature of the initial contract was merely a roster-rule formality.
Axford had a 3.92 ERA and 63/36 K/BB ratio in 55 innings for the Indians last season, spending most of the year in a setup role after losing the closing gig early on.
