Huff hits for cycle, but Angels prevail - Former Astro just third Oriole to accomplish feat

Jun/30/07 11:06 AM

BALTIMORE — Aubrey Huff had a night to remember. The Los Angeles Angels got a victory to savor.

Huff hit for the cycle, but the Angels got a tiebreaking two-run homer from Howie Kendrick in the ninth inning and beat the Baltimore Orioles 9-7 on Friday night.

Huff tripled in the second inning, doubled in the fourth, hit a three-run homer in the fifth and singled to center in the seventh. He left for a pinch-runner after going 4-for-4 with three RBIs and three runs scored.

"Obviously for me, that's probably one of the most special days of my baseball career," said Huff, who played for the Astros last season.

Huff HR Ends Duel In 10th, Lifts Orioles

May/10/07 12:36 PM

Aubrey Huff homered with one out in the 10th inning against his former team, giving the Orioles a 1-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays Wednesday night in Baltimore.

After James Shields allowed only three hits in nine innings for Tampa Bay, Brian Stokes (1-4) faced only two batters before giving up Huff's home run. Huff drove a 1-and-1 pitch over the wall in center for his fourth homer.

Huff played for five seasons in Tampa Bay and briefly with the Astros last year before signing with the Orioles as a free agent in the offseason.

John Parrish (1-0) worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the 10th, retiring B.J. Upton on a slow roller with two outs after giving up three straight singles.

Huff is jeered in his return to Tampa Bay

Apr/20/07 07:54 AM

ST. PETERSBURG, FLA. // Orioles first baseman Aubrey Huff, who was in the Tampa Bay Devil Rays organization for about 8 1/2 years, arrived at Tropicana Field this afternoon for the first time as a visiting player, fully expecting the treatment that the sparse crowd gave him.

Huff was booed when his name was announced for the starting lineups and again before his first at-bat, when he popped out with two on in the first.

"I guess they booed me when I was playing here, so I'd imagine they'd boo me since I am on the other team," Huff said before the game.

Huff, who was traded by the Devil Rays to the Houston Astros last July before he signed with the Orioles as a free agent, had 34 home runs and 107 RBIs for the Devil Rays in 2003 and 29 home runs and 104 RBIs for them in 2004. But his numbers fell his last season and a half with the club and Huff has never minced words about the organization's losing ways. Despite that, he expressed gratitude to the organization and said he felt that the club's new ownership has Tampa Bay headed in the right direction.

Huff: Most of time with Rays was good

Apr/16/07 08:39 AM

MINNEAPOLIS - Aubrey Huff returns for the first time to Tropicana Field tonight glad to have played there and happy to have left.

"Looking back at it, it was a great place for me to start out," Huff said from Baltimore. "You'd be an idiot to say anything bad. As a young player you get to go up, play, learn the league and put up numbers. But in the end, it started getting old for me as far as the losing. It was time for a change of scenery for me. The steps ownership was taking, it wore on me."

Huff, 30, was traded to the Astros in July, then signed a three-year, $20-million free-agent deal with Baltimore, and has been quoted several times about how refreshing it is to have a chance to win and play in front of bigger crowds - though with the Orioles both could be relative.

Ex-Devil Ray Huff Finds Hope With the Orioles

Mar/22/07 09:09 AM

JUPITER, Fla., March 21 -- In past years, the sight of Aubrey Huff slumped in a chair in front of his locker, as he was on Wednesday morning, might have suggested he was unhappy. Such a sight was common the past few years in the Tampa Bay Devil Rays clubhouse. Huff could barely get himself to leave his house to get to the ballpark. Once the game was over, Huff rushed home.

"I know the last couple of years it got really hard to go to the field every day," Huff said. "It really wore on you. It would get to the point where you'd get to the field as late as possible. You just wanted to get in there and then get out of there. It was tough. Mentally, it took a lot out of me. It took a lot out of a lot of guys."

But Wednesday, Huff was simply tired. He traveled to Port St. Lucie on Tuesday night for a game against the New York Mets and then headed here early Wednesday morning for the Cardinals game. His eyes were puffy as pillows, his face drawn, and occasionally he'd let out a monstrous yawn. The truth is, Huff is having one of the most enjoyable springs of his career

Huff gives Orioles' lineup flexibility - Former Miami star can play several positions.

Mar/21/07 08:14 PM

FORT LAUDERDALE – When Aubrey Huff was with Tampa Bay, he remembers walking in the mall during spring training and seeing New York Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter shopping.

"There would be four or five people around him," Huff said. "It isn't what I want. I'm a low-key guy. When I take my wife to dinner, I don't want to be bothered. I've always been that way. I'm not playing to get attention."

Huff, who set a University of Miami record for RBI with 95 in 1998, will start getting some attention because he was the Orioles' top free-agent signing at $20 million for three years, and Baltimore has a history of connecting with its best players.

O's Huff happy to be back in AL East

Mar/13/07 11:54 AM

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Last year, the Baltimore Orioles were lacking in power. They hope that Aubrey Huff can provide some for them.

They signed the 30-year-old Huff as a free agent over the winter. Huff spent nearly nine seasons with Tampa Bay and split last year between the Devil Rays and Houston. He batted .283 with 8 home runs and 28 RBIs with Tampa Bay and .256 with 13 homers and 38 RBIs with Houston.

Huff is rivaling Kevin Millar for being the life of the clubhouse asking everyone for help with word puzzles and mocking bystanders’ attire.

“I haven’t had this much fun playing baseball in probably five years,” he said. “I wake up and I’m excited to get here and take the field. We mesh well together. It’s a good time.”

Huff excited to get started

Feb/18/07 12:27 PM

FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. // With more than one type of glove in his locker, Aubrey Huff says he doesn't care where the Orioles play him this season. It's obvious that he's satisfied just being in their clubhouse.

Huff reported today, the latest position player to arrive before Tuesday's due date. After spending parts of seven seasons with the Devil Rays, and still living in Tampa, he didn't have far to travel.

"This is a short drive for me to come down here," he said. "I wanted to get here early and get everything set up, get my apartment set up over here and meet everybody slowly but surely."

More from Huff

Feb/18/07 12:26 PM

Here's a little more on Aubrey Huff:

Before coming to Fort Lauderdale, he did an internet search to find the list of players who would be in camp. That's how he learned that he'd be reunited with former Tampa Bay teammate Rob Bell. The guy clearly is excited to be an Oriole.

Huff's busy winter included being married on Jan. 27. "Hopefully, she'll bring us some good luck this year," he said of his new wife.

Asked which Orioles pitcher was the toughest for him to face as a member of the Devil Rays, he replied: "Bedard, by far, lefty on lefty. Cabrera, when he was throwing strikes and he was on...man. We would go to the dugout and say, 'How does this guy get hit when he throws strikes?' He's amazing when he throws strikes."

Newest Oriole Huff happy to be here

Jan/04/07 07:24 AM

When Aubrey Huff passed his physical yesterday, finalized a three-year, $20 million deal and was introduced as the newest Oriole, it likely represented the last major move for the club in a busy offseason.

The Orioles signed nine free agents, including two of their own, and made two trades. The bullpen was overhauled, the starting rotation received a new member and the lineup was bolstered by two veterans with solid track records.

"It's one of those things where we don't know how good we are at this point," said Orioles executive vice president Mike Flanagan, who called Huff the type of hitter the club has been seeking all offseason. "I think we improved on paper. ... We expect our rotation to be better ... our bullpen to be better. We are optimistic

Report: Orioles, Huff agree to 3-year deal

Jan/03/07 07:04 AM

The Baltimore Orioles have reached an agreement on a three-year deal with free-agent outfielder Aubrey Huff, according to a report in The Baltimore Sun.

The contract will reportedly pay Huff $20 million over three years. The 30-year-old slugger hit .267 with 21 home runs last year in stints with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Houston Astros.

Over his career, Huff has been a steady hitter but has struggled with defense, though he is capable of playing both corner infield positions as well as the outfield.

In a career that has spanned a little over six seasons, Huff is a .285 hitter with 141 home runs and 487 RBIs. He had his best season in 2003, when he hit .311 with 34 homers and 107 RBIs.

(nbcsports.com)

Huff, Orioles Agree to $20M, 3-Year Deal

Jan/01/07 12:14 PM

Aubrey Huff has reached a preliminary agreement on a three-year, $20 million contract with the Baltimore Orioles, who hope the versatile free agent can add punch to a lineup that ranked 11th in the AL in home runs last season.

The agreement was secured over the weekend, according to a source who spoke on condition of anonymity because the Orioles have not yet announced the deal. The contract will be finalized if Huff passes a physical, which will likely be administered this week in Baltimore.

Huff, 30, can play first base, third base and both corner spots in the outfield. But his value to the Orioles is his bat: Huff hit 21 homers last season with Tampa Bay and Houston, and averaged 27 from 2002-05 with the Devil Rays.

Baltimore hit only 164 homers last season, led by Miguel Tejada (24) and Ramon Hernandez (23). No other player hit more than 16.