Alex Gonzalez traded to the Tigers

The Tigers filled their sudden need at shortstop by acquiring Alex Gonzalez from the Orioles in exchange for infielder Steve Lombardozzi.

Pay per head services reported that the Tigers could be without their starting shortstop Jose Iglesias for the entire season because of stress fractures in his legs.

The team already had Danny Worth and Hernan Perez as potential replacements for Iglesias and they also picked up infielder Andrew Romine from the Angels on Friday.

Alex Gonzalez had signed a minor league deal with the Orioles this offseason after playing in an utility role with the Bucks the past two years. He played just three games at shortstop last year and also saw time at first base and third base, appearing in a total of 41 games.

The 37-year-old Gonzalez has spent the majority of his career at shortstop and has a .972 fielding percentage in 1,539 games at the position. Gonzalez, who was an All-Star with the Marlins in 1999, he helped the team win the 2003 World Series championship.

Gonzalez has appeared in 1,600 major league games since his debut in 1998. He is a career .246 hitter with 332 doubles, 157 home runs and 688 runs batted in over 15 seasons with the Marlins, Red Sox, Reds, Blue Jays, Braves and Brewers.

He had appeared in 12 games for the Orioles this spring and is hitting .428 with a pair of home runs in 28 at-bats.

Lombardozzi had been acquired by the Tigers from the Nationals for Doug Fister last December. He had spent his entire career with the Nationals and is a career .264 hitter since making his debut in 2011.