Nationals, looking to add power, acquire outfielder Wily Mo Pena from Red Sox

**min0 lee** · 08-17-2007, 05:55 PM

Nationals, looking to add power, acquire outfielder Wily Mo Pena from Red Sox - MLB - Yahoo! Sports

By JOSEPH WHITE, AP Sports Writer
August 17, 2007

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Washington Nationals acquired outfielder Wily Mo Pena and cash from the Boston Red Sox on Friday for a player to be named. Pena will platoon in left field for the Nationals, who hope he will provide a power bat to the team that is last in the majors in home runs.

Pena was a backup for the AL East-leading Red Sox, batting .218 with five home runs and 17 RBIs in 73 games. He has 67 homers -- as well as 436 strikeouts -- in 459 games over six seasons with Cincinnati and Boston.

The Nationals have hit only 82 home runs this season.
"We don't score a lot of runs," Nationals general manager Jim Bowden said. "We don't have a lot of depth at the higher levels right now, and he's 25 years old with power. It was an opportunity we couldn't turn down."
Pena will join the team Saturday, and his arrival means a demotion of sorts for Ryan Church, who has been the everyday left fielder. Church, who bats left-handed, was hitting .265 with 10 home runs and 48 RBIs entering Friday night's game against the New York Mets.
"Certainly sometimes acquisitions can motivate other players to step up their game," Bowden said.
Pena is a liability in the field and has had trouble staying healthy -- he missed part of last season with a broken wrist -- and Bowden was frank about the pros and cons of the trade. "One thing about Willie Mo Pena I can tell you is if you give him 500 at bats, he's going to hit 40 home runs and strike out more than Adam Dunn," Bowden said. "And he's a below-average defender who needs to work hard on his game."

**soxmuscle** · 08-17-2007, 05:58 PM

Good pick-up for Washington. He certainly wasn't going to have time to flourish in Boston. It's too bad. Good luck WMP.

**Triple Threat** · 08-17-2007, 07:06 PM

Originally Posted by min0 lee

Pena is a liability in the field and has had trouble staying healthy -- he missed part of last season with a broken wrist -- and Bowden was frank about the pros and cons of the trade. "One thing about Willie Mo Pena I can tell you is if you give him 500 at bats, he's going to hit 40 home runs and strike out more than Adam Dunn," Bowden said. "And he's a below-average defender who needs to work hard on his game."

I guess that's an improvement for the Nationals.

**soxmuscle** · 08-17-2007, 07:15 PM

A friend of mine was joking around about how he didn't think Wily Mo Pena's contract allowed him to be sent to the Minors.

The Nationals are the Minors? Get it, yea... ha.

**I Are Baboon** · 08-21-2007, 07:15 AM

So basically Theo Epstein traded Bronson Arroyo for a player to be named later. Swing and a miss with that one, Theo.

I hope Wily Mo does well in Washington.

**min0 lee** · 08-21-2007, 07:29 AM

Originally Posted by I Are Baboon

So basically Theo Epstein traded Bronson Arroyo for a player to be named later. Swing and a miss with that one, Theo.

I hope Wily Mo does well in Washington.

I said at the time it was a bad one. I still think Theos doing a hell of a job.

**soxmuscle** · 08-21-2007, 01:44 PM

The PTBNL is Chris Carter, a really good player considering I wasn't expecting more than a bag of baseballs.

Minor League Baseball: Stats: Player

He'll likely be called up when rosters expand in September and be used in a platoon role with the struggling Kevin Youkilis at first base.

If Wily Mo wasn't going to fit (something that still baffles me, as if JD Drew has been an MVP this season, right?), this Chris Carter kid is an excellent option.

**min0 lee** · 08-21-2007, 06:39 PM

WASHINGTON -- The Nationals traded right-hander Emiliano Fruto to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday for prospect Chris Carter, who then was shipped to the Boston Red Sox to complete last week's deal that sent outfielder Wily Mo Pena to Washington.
Fruto was 3-9 with a 5.26 ERA in 18 appearances, including 16 starts, for Triple-A Columbus in 2007. Washington acquired him last offseason when it traded second baseman Jose Vidro to Seattle.
Carter is a lefty-hitting first baseman who was batting .324 with 18 homers and 84 RBIs at Triple-A Tucson. He becomes the player to be named from Friday's trade in which Washington got Pena and cash from Boston.
In three games with the Nationals, Pena is 5-for-11 (.455) with a double, two homers and three RBIs.
Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press

Not too shabby....remember his name.

**min0 lee** · 08-21-2007, 06:43 PM

Makes you wonder why the Dbacks gave him up.

From baseballamerica:
Carter, who has played first base and left field when not a DH this season, still isn’t a great fielder, as he’s stiff and is a below-average thrower. One American League scout quipped, “I’m not sure he owns a glove other than a batting glove.”

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