Rockies' Todd Helton glad to have old pal Manning in town

Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton, who was Peyton Manning's teammate at the University of Tennessee and remains close friends with Manning, said he was happy to hear that the star quarterback would be joining the Denver Broncos.

Helton visited Manning when he worked out at Duke during the offseason and said he looked as good as ever.

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"He was fine," Helton said. "I kept telling him how impressed I was, how far he'd come since he came out (for a visit) after he had surgery. I'm an untrained eye, but I knew (his passes) hurt when I caught it."

Helton said he thinks Manning's arrival "will bring unbelievable excitement" to Denver. "I can picture him in a Broncos uniform. It's a Broncos town, and they have somebody to root for. He's going to come in and play well, and I'm excited to see it," Helton said.

Helton received a scholarship to play football and baseball at Tennessee. He was briefly the Volunteers' starting quarterback in 1994 before hurting his knee and being replaced by Manning.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.