Former Phillies (Gold Glove) right fielder Bobby Abreu is taking the 2013 season off with the intent on returning to major league ball in 2014, according to MLB Trade Rumors. Before you go thinking about a potential return to the Phillies, think again.
Abreu is 39 years old and his batting average has steadily declined over the past four seasons since being traded away from Philadelphia in 2006. Rather than get older, the Phillies still need to get younger and improve the level of play defensively in the outfield. So scratch Abreu as a potential Phillie in 2014 off the list right now.
But have you ever wondered what happened to the prospects acquired in the trade with the New York Yankees in exchange for Abreu?
I dug in to Baseball Reference to find out.
C.J. Henry, pitcher: Henry played a few seasons in the minor leagues, including a few years in Lakewood. He was released following the 2007 season and he returned to the Yankees organization to play for the Single A Advanced Tampa Yankees. His return to the Yankees lasted just one season before he quit baseball and pursued basketball. He walked on to play basketball at Memphis, with his tuition covered by the Yankees as part of his contract. He was to play with his brother, Xavier, after being heavily recruited by John Calipari but the brothers then went to Kansas after Calipari was hired by Kentucky. He redshirted in 2009-10 and he transferred to NAIA Southern Nazarene University, where he became the team's leading scorer in the 2010-11 season.
Jesus Sanchez, pitcher: Sanchez remains a minor league prospect to this day and is currently playing in the Milwaukee Brewers organization at the AAA level in Nashville. After doing some catching with the Yankees, Sanchez began transitioning to a pitcher on a regular basis. Sanchez split time with Lakewood and Clearwater. He made the full conversion to pitching in 2009 with the Blue Claws, going 10-6 with a 3.44 ERA in 26 games. In December 2010 Sanchez signed a contract with the Brewers, where he has been moving up the farm system. He was n the Brewers' 40-man roster last October 17 but he has yet to make his major league debut.
Carlos Monasterios, pitcher: Monasterios saw some success in the Phillies farm system, being named to the 2009 Florida State League mid-season All-Star team while with Clearwater. Later in 2009 Monasterios was drafted by the New York Mets in the Rule V Draft and quickly traded to the Dodgers. Monasterios made his major league debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 5, 2010 and he put together a record of 3-5 with a 4.37 ERA in his lone major league season. In 2011, Monasterios was assigned to the Dodgers' triple A club in Albuquerque but he made just one start there before undergoing Tommy John surgery. The following April he was released by the Dodgers after he arrived to spring training with lingering arm problems.
Matt Smith, pitcher: Smith pitched in 14 games in relief for the Phillies in 2006 after being acquired in the trade from New York. He was one of the more dependable arms out of the bullpen with a 0.87 ERA in 20.2 innings. Smith would go on to be a part of the Phillies roster to start the 2007 season but a lack of control on the mound led to 11 walks and just one strikeout and an 11.25 ERA in just four innings of work. The rough start ended up sending Smith to Ottawa, where the Phillies were holding their triple A franchise while transitioning from Scranton to Lehigh Valley. In Ottawa Smith would undergo Tommy John surgery in July 2007, designated for assignment in January 2009 and then released. He was invited to spring camp by the Phillies and resigned to a minor league contract. That contract expired at the end of the 2008 season and Smith signed one final minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs in January 2009. Smith was released at the end of spring training in 2009 and has not been in action since.
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Abreu was traded from the Phillies to the Yankees on July 30, 2006 along with starting pitcher Cory Lidle. Lidle appeared in ten games with the Yankees in the second half of the 2006 season, and he had one forgettable appearance in the ALDS against Detroit, allowing three runs on four hits in just 1.1 innings pitched. During the off-season Lidle was killed in a small plane crash while flying a plane in to a New York building.
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