Nov 21 2008
Phillies trade Golson to Rangers
New GM Ruben Amaro has made his first trade, but it’s unlikely that anyone will know if he made a good deal for at least a year or two. In a trade of former first round picks, both of which will likely turn out to be busts, the Phillies shipped speedy outfielder Greg Golson to the Texas Rangers for slugging outfielder John Mayberry Jr. The Phillies believe that Mayberry, the son of former major leaguer John Mayberry, will at the very least provide organizational outfield depth for the soon-to-be-departed Pat Burrell. However, if you read between the lines, it seems evident that they’re quietly banking on Mayberry developing into an everyday outfielder. In all likelihood, Mayberry will be a fringe major leaguer who will never be able to hold Burrell’s jock.
At 6-6 and 230 pounds, the soon-to-be 25 year-old Mayberry hit .264 with 20 HR and 71 RBI in the minors last year, while splitting time between Double A Frisco and Triple A Oklahoma. In 2007, Mayberry slugged 30 HR and 83 RBI while splitting time between Single A Bakersfield and Double A Frisco. Mayberry also has some mobility as he went 10-for-13 in steal attempts. He also has enough range to play either right or left field.
Golson didn’t have a bad season at Double A Reading, hitting .282 with 13 HR, 60 RBI, and 23 steals. However, he also struck out 130 times, something that has bothered the Phillies the entire time that he has been in the organization. In 2,101 at-bats in the minors, Golson has struck out 623 times, which is about 29.7% of his at-bats. In six major league at-bats, Golson went hitless with four strikeouts. Ouch. In contrast, Mayberry has struck out 420 times in 1,732 at-bats, which is about 24.2% of the time. While there isn’t a major difference between strikeout rates, Golson’s strikeout numbers match a guy who should hit 30-40 homers a season and not a guy who is at the top of the line-up. Of course, Golson is only 23 years old and still has plenty of time to turn it around. It’s also interesting that Mayberry hit more doubles and triples than Golson did this past year. Maybe Mayberry can provide the power that the Phillies’ farm system desperately needs, but there has to be a reason that the Rangers soured on him.
The best case scenario would be that Mayberry develops into a power-hitting corner outfielder that will replace Burrell as well as complement Shane Victorino and Jayson Werth, while Golson becomes Michael Bourn or worse. Hey, it seemed to work out well for the Phillies the last time they traded away a speedy outfielder from Texas that struggled at the plate (see: Bourn, Michael) to a Texas team for a player that had become somewhat of a disappointment to his current organization (see: Lidge, Brad).
Go Phillies.
