Evening Roundup (A swap of 1st round picks and more)
A few notes for this evening:
- In a swap of former first round draft picks, the Philadelphia Phillies traded OF Greg Golson to the Texas Rangers in exchange for OF John Maberry Jr., according to Richard Durrett of the Dallas Morning News (click here for the post). Golson had a cup of coffee with the Phillies in September, but played the majority of the season at Double A, hitting .282 with 13 HR, 60 RBI, 64 R and 23 SB in 426 AB. Mayberry started the season at Double A before being promoted to Triple A, hitting .264 overall with 20 HR, 71 RBI, 85 R and 10 SB in 519 AB. Mayberry turns 26-years old in December, 2 years older then Golson, and would appear to be a little bit closer to the major leagues at this point. That certainly makes him more valuable to the Phillies, who may need him to help replace Pat Burrell, if he leaves via free agency. I think Golson may end up being the better of the two, but I don’t know that he’ll be able to crack the Rangers line-up this season making Mayberry the better option for ‘09.
- David Lennon of New York Newsday (click here for the post) has posted an update on Daniel Murphy, who underwent an MRI today. It turns out that he has a “Grade 2 Strain of the right hamstring”, which will take him out of participating in the winter leagues. He is, however, expected to be ready for Opening Day.
