Phillies acquire Mike Sweeney
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Phillies acquire Mike Sweeney
Daily News staff
With Ryan Howard on the disabled list, the Phillies have acquired first baseman Mike Sweeney from the Seattle Mariners for a player to be named later or cash considerations.
Sweeney, 37, was batting .263 with six home runs and 18 RBI in 30 games for the Mariners this season. With runners in scoring position, he was hitting .313 (10-32).
Sweeney has had two stops on the disabled list this season with back inflammation/spasms. Most recently, he was on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Tacoma, where, in 12 games, he hit .366 (15-41) with two home runs and nine RBI.
A five-time American League All-Star, Sweeney has hit at least 20 home runs in six seasons, including 29 in back-to-back seasons (2000-01). He has made 570 career starts at first base.
Sweeney is a career .298 hitter with 213 home runs and 901 RBI in 1,428 games for the Royals (1995-2007), the Oakland A’s (2008) and Seattle (2009-10).
The Phillies will make a move on the 25-man roster when Sweeney reports.
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Comments (97)
If there is a god, the player to named later will be Chris Wheeler.
Don't they have to make a move on the 40 man roster as well? Moyer to the 60 day DL maybe?— lancastermike- former wilmington blue rock!— manly
- This guy used to be a great hitter on Kansas City.— UncleEddie
I see from Wikipedia that Sweeney has been politically active against abortion and stem cell research. In Philly I hope he'll be equally active with his bat, which used to be pretty good.- Can't hurt for now. I don't know what his R/L splits are but he can at least be a platoon with Gload, and hopefully a RH Matt Stairs when Howard gets back.— Souf Phil
- maybe it will be john mayberry, traded, or dfa'd...sweeney had some really great years with the royals, but was always dogged my injuries and hasnt done much since...he's a righthanded hitter so he'll platoon with Gload at first base rather than mighty Cody Ransom...does this mean they think Howard will be out longer than the 15 days?— jim715
- @richie allen... one of the funnier posts i have read! well played! and couldnt agree with you more— pband26
- Send the strike out machine Ransom back down to the minors.— amann08
Solid, veteran presence. Good locker room guy, a pennant race could raise the bar on his game. Gregg Dobbs would be wise not to buy that new house in Moorestown.- good move— JesseH
- Solid player will be nice bat to have on the bench after Ryan is healthy. He will be a better fill in for Ryan than Ransom/Gload.— MBB
- Great move, exciting. I'm hoping the 'to be named' turns out to be Tom McDonald, who's so bad he makes Chris Wheeler sound good. "T-Mac" isn't as offensive when the Phillies are winning, but his incessant enthusiasm during losing streaks, and of course endless recitation of narrow stats, are simply unacceptable. Thank God for Scott Franzke.— EdWeirauch
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Great work Richie Allen. Bravo.- Reminds of a move they made in 2008. Who was it? Oh yeah, Matt Stairs. Just the type of move we're looking for right now, Rube. Can any of you that see into the future and blame Amaro for all the wrong moves he's made so far tell us if this will work out, please.— vafan
- I hope it's Mayberry. He was just called up. Reuben could dump him and make the deal when he came to the Phillies, look better.— phineas
- Richie - FUNNY STUFF . God I hate Wheels— kdubs215
- could mayberry end up being the player to be named later, or dfa'd? with howard and gload and dobbs as the only guys on the team who can play first, i always wondered why they didnt give Mayberry some work in the minors at first base like his old man, just so you might have a righthanded option for a situation like this, plus to give poor Mayberry some added value for when the phils inevitably get rid of him..— jim715
- I like this move....and if they don't end Moyer's season, can they do something with Baez?....please!— jimyd0315
- There's already one opening on the 40-man roster— GoPhilsGo
- So we pick up another guy that we can put on the diabled list? If he stays healthy then good pick up...so long as the player to be named is Adam Eaton.— phillyfanintx
- Wow, Mike Sweeney is still in the league?— grales
- Ransom to go and this is a nice pick up for 4 weeks anyhow, the time Ryan will really get back.— KGKoons
- Seems Seattle is the first thing they look for in a trade partner. Too late Rueben, Cliff Lee is gone . Maybe you can send one of those in the original trade package for Lee, back ?— phineas
- Six homeruns in 30 games projects to 33 HR for a full season.— Freedom Fries
- Good move. A little pop in his bat and I remember this guy as really good in the clutch. Hopefully the back spasm thing is taken care of.— Wheel
- Actually his name is Tom McCarthy...not McDonald...dont insult that great name...Tommy McDonald is possibly the greatest WR we've ever had..— POTIN
- That brings Richie Allen's Homerune total: 23 (and of course the one "Foul Pole" debacle he insists on counting)....lol!— TBear
- Darn there is not god so we have to keep Chris Wheeler. Why are we so annoyed with this guy or a better question is why is Chris still on the air? I got used to Gary Matthews after a few months but with Chris it will never happen.— sportsdead
- Richie Allen you are right on!. Wheels just makes you want to blow your brains out he is so god awful annoying. I scream at the TV for him to just shut up and let me enjoy the game. Can't believe he has lasted this long. The guy just insults your intelligence every time he trys to explain something to us. It's like nails on the chalkboard. Please, trade him!— dave13
- good send ransom back to american legion where he may not even be able to handle those pitchers— tooltime
- You will be so glad to have Sweeney on your team. Excellent hitter. Some power. Knows how to play. Ultimate professional. Good clubhouse guy. The Phillies are my new team since the Mariners are . . . well . . . 22 out.— Stan in Seattle
- Sweeney can still hit well when he's not on the DL with back problems. But that happens a lot.— Raggamonkey
Wish he could play like he did 10 years ago. Eh.- Sorry Ritchie, no chance. The only game Wheeler plays uses different balls.— Bob1
- I now know why you dopes hate Chris Wheeler. He's smarter than all of you. Geniuses, Matt Stairs wishes he had Sweeney's career.— Eagles1st
- Any more teams in MLB want to hand the Phillies the NL Pennant on a silver platter. It's a good thing that are people like Pat Gillick and Ed Wade are working on behalf of the Phillies. Pat Gillick still even though is a Phillies senior advisor is the defacto GM for the Mariners. It's good to be "The King".— Drew777
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- @RichieAllen, that was a classic! Nothing could be truer and no move would be so widely hailed. If the boy genius GM wants to win the fans back after his Lee debacle, nothing would do it faster for him than to find a way to dump Wheeler, with T-Mac and Sarge as throw-ins. Von Hayes was a five-for-one, this deal could be a three-for NONE, no questions asked. What will it take to get Franzke and LA transferred over to the TV broadcasts?— advantasux
- Nice pickup. Mayberry can't be the PTBNL since he is on the 40 man roster.— paolibulldog
- No - the WORST CALL IN THE HISTORY OF BASEBALL IS WHEN JIM JACKSON SAYS, "THAT BALL IS GONE, GOODBYE." I HAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTEEEEE IT!!!!— knebman
- Hey this thought is not funny--Sweeney was picked up up after the August 31 interleague deadline so he won't be able to help in the playoffs. Somebody please tell me I'm wrong.
- off topic a bit but I just wanted to congratulate Jayson Werth for stepping up big-time last night with Howard going to the DL. He made contact once in 5 plate appearances. Same as the week after Chase went out, Werth retreated into his cocoon and produced nothing for 20 games. He's hitting .154 for the year with RISP and .103 with RISP and 2 outs. What am incredibly clutch guy he turned out to be.— advantasux
- @Richie, it's only August 4th.— advantasux
- Hey Richie Allen. Today is August 4.— chuckm
- Wheels ideally wants to be traded to a dome team. The rug that he's been sporting on that pinhead of his for the last couple decades could use a breather. That storm that ripped through CBP a few weeks ago really put the "deadcat" on his head through the ringer.— somertonspartan
- I meant the July 31st interleague deadline. Is Sweeney elligible for the post season roster???
- Richie Allen: home run with your Wheeler comment, but swing and a miss on interleague trading deadline.— chuckw
- Richie Allen- the acquisition of Sweeney happened after August 1st, not August 31st. He's eligible for the playoffs. And you don't like Chris Wheeler? Wow!— Eagles1st
- Amaro deserves some credit for this move; I was beginning to fear that Cody Ransom would be the right-handed bat at first base, platooning with Ross Gload (who actually is a solid hitter). Good pickup.— chuckw
- My guess is that they send Mayberry back down, or totally cut ties w/ Ransom. That guy is only worth cleaning up the chew on the dugout floor. I don't think this means that Howard is going to be out longer than 15 days either. They just need a player better than Ransom to help the team tread water for the next 2 weeks.— realzeel
- Harry could control him (Wheeler). McCarthy cannot. Wheeler thinks he invented baseball. Sure do miss Harry and Whitey.— johnnymon
- Good move, He will be a great bench player when Howard returns. Maybe now we can get rid of Dobbs once and for all— eaglesman1
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- HE was a great player for K.C. and has had issues with his back , But! he is also a career 300 hitter who bats right and is still a better than average 1st baseman .He just completed his rehab and was ready to return to Seattle before coming to the Phillies ! I feel this is a very good move for us on 2 levals , we now have a solid back up to Howard at 1st and a very good right handed bat of the bench !— JOEY . C.
- Richie Allen - What a great line!!— boris
- Listening to Chris Wheeler is about as much fun as getting run over by an 18 wheeler. Which I imagine is not to much fun. You guy forget, Chrissy is personal buddies going way back, I think a kids, with Dave Montgomery. That is how he has lasted so long, and even got the job in the first place.— Phedupwithphilly
@Richie Allen well said. He must have pictures of someone. How else would he keep his job?- Nice move - proof there is no complacency or lack of will. Looking forward to catching the Braves & further burying the Mets. Also looking for a way to shore up the pen.— Ed3
- I miss By Saam— Ed3
- Good post RICHIE ALLEN. Dl for dl ummmmmmmmmmm.— tobyjoe
- Totally agree with Richie Allen. Then maybe we can deal McCarthey to Washington for Dibbs.— ballzy101
- @EdW...Totallt agree about Tom McCarthy. "T-Mac" seems like a nice guy, but I cannot stand his "incessant enthusiasm", as you so eloquently put it, during virtually the entire game. Phils losing 10-1 in the ninth inning, Ross Gload hits an rbi single...T-Mac sounds as if the Phils have the winning run at third base. Plus, he and Wheeler must think the viewers are a bunch of baseball newbies because they go into great detail about many of the same things game after game. He also laughs waaaayyy too hard at many of the things Sarge and Wheels says. I really like Scott Franze and L.A. together as well as Jim Jackson. They are much better at keeping it real and sometimes even sound disappointed when a Phillies player screws up (unlike T-Mac, where every day is lollipops and rainbows).— MrPhillie
- @RichieAllen to the HOF— mick314
- i'm glad they got mike sweeney instead of sweeney todd - nobody's head would have been safe then. just saying.— tmq
- Seattle's site said this was a waiver claim?— QuoVadimus44
So do we ever make deals with anyone besides Seattle and Houston?— burholme- welcome to philly mike. great show btw--sweeney todd.— liberty_bell
- Richie Allen: honestly one of the most clever/funny posts I have ever read. How can anyone be tired of captain obvious? "The Phillies are in Florida tonight, playing those pesky Marlins and if they can score enough runs I'm confident they will win this one". I'm sure he's a heckuva nice guy but well over 100 times a year of him is a little too much for me and apparently most others on here posting. I would give my little toe for 10 more years of Richie and Harry(rest in piece my friends you are so,so very missed)..— phillysportsfan88
- Making a trade at the ML level is all about who you know and who you get along with. Some guys will NOT trade with certain guys, they won't even talk to certain guys and some teams will NOT trade with certain teams. Also it's a game of you do me a favor while I'm up and later on when you need something and your up I'll help you out any way I can. Lots of behind the scenes politics involved. I guess we should feel lucky that Seattle and Houston atleast keep taking our calls.......— Mark1npt
- Why not give Matt Rizzotti a shot - 16HR/ .364 at Reading. Why do they seem to be so afraid to bring young guys up??— mjoa1
- anybody else smell something fishy that we dealt with Seattle yet again and that we got exactly what we needed for very, very little in return, almost like it was a pay back for a deal that went the other way last December? Gillick's influence on both teams cannot be denied. From the time we learned that RAJ chose not to even shop Lee around for the best deal, but instead just seemed to gift-wrap him for Seattle, I've wondered if Gillick's involvement with both teams had something to do with it all.— advantasux
- I personally know Mike Sweeney from his days with the Royals. You are talking about a classy, Christain guy, loved by all, just like Thome. He is the typical great pro in the clubhouse and will help our offense from the right side. As for not having played 1st base in a few years, that was mainly because of being on teams that already had good 1st basemen entrenched on the team and trying to give him DH duty to save his back. He has never had a chance to be in the playoffs and will love the opportunity. Geoff Jenkins sucked at the end of his career, but can you remember the sight of how happy he was to be in the playoffs and WS with the Phils? And, can you rememeber the big hit he got for us? Mike can do the same if not more for this team in the next two months.— Mark1npt
- WOW IF sweeney is healthly he will Could be huge for the phillies... He is a great hitter and even better in the Clutch... kind of reminds me of Kruk 's batting skill. Sweeney will NOT go 0-5 and will NOT leave 5 or 6 guys in scoring postion. Far better than Ransom.— wxdavid
- And it was Mike Sweeney who inspired the limerick which says something about a "Guy named Sweeney who spilled gin on his weenie..." (So I hear)— Hugh Jass
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- Sweeny was on the DL, the mariners activated him to make this trade. Sweeny challenged his teammates to stand up and fight him in a team meeting in Seattle. Hope he doesn't pull that here.— 46 and 2
- Nice to see the Phils get a couple 2 out hits in the first frame tonite with Ross Gload and Dominic Brown doing the honors. Would be great if Jimmy "pop up video" Rollins could learn that it's okay to take 2 strikes on a 3-0 count. If Rollins walked to lead off the game, they could have scored 4 or 5 in the first inning. Jimmy needs to pick it up hitting just 239 and if he would only use his brain at the plate when the count is in his favor.— salurb
- mayberry is getting used to the ride back and forth up the northeast extension of the PA turnpike,...hopefully he'll get a couple atbats with his cup of coffee and step in there with a whole lot of attitude— SyddBarrett
Sounda like a SOLID addition to the roster. GO 'FIGHTENS'...johnnyu- Can only help! Hope this means Dobbs is gone, enough already with him. Keep the kids round.— jpirela
- If Amaro can get rid of Baez as the 'ptbnl', then he gets GM of the Year in my eyes. And personally, I would rather have Sweeney over Rizzoti at this point in time. Great year by Riz, but it is against AA pitching..if he was scorching AAA pitching, which consists of pitchers who played in the majors, then go for it, but right now go with the former All-Star who will provide an RH pop off the bench once Howard comes back and is a clubhouse leader. Riz should be up in Sept. and I cant wait to see what he can do then.— ESFjellin
- It's Tom Macarthy...guess that shows you pay attention. Will the new owners please either eliminate the comments section or edit it with some intellegence, please. It's an insult to the city to have these poorly thought out and usually off topic comments. Can't even get the name right when you make comment...geez.— DennisAtwell
- i assume you mean "intelligence"— InThe Crease
- they need a spell checker on here...but you get my point.— DennisAtwell
- Interesting, Sweeny is one those proto-Australopithecines that are against stem cell therapy due to the human mind virus that believes in fairy tales and fabricated mythologies? Too bad. Maybe if he or his loved ones get CA, Parkinsons, diabetes or any of the other myriad debilitating diseases out there, I hope he reminds himself that he aided and abetted in that person's hellish suffering. Way to go! Its the same mindless thinking indicative of Palin, Limaugh and all their pathogenic affiliates. Delusional people who are against stem cells therapy hypocritically absolves themselves of any guilt when millions die because they DIDN'T have a stem cell based cure. Real nice....and this is why the human species will thankfully become extinct. I have always wanted to ask an anti abortionist, "would you have supported the abortion of baby Hitler if you could back in time"? Should be a no brainer:-)— daystrum
- Hey Richie Allen you see your boy Happ tonight.
- This was a great trade six years ago...Gload can fill in fine.— Philly Fan in Kuwait
- This guy is a George W. Bush radical right wing conservative, which to me should have been a red flag. The Phils should not have acquired him because right wing religious conservatives are complete failures in life.— eldiablodelsol2009
- then don't root for him, idiot. what does any of that have to do with him playing ball for us? what a dope you are. meanwhile, how's that hope and change thing working out for you so far? what a champ you and your friends elected. him and his friends are going down hard in November. then you can cry all you want for the following few years while these "complete failures" take the country back.— advantasux
- Good pick up...no downside... two other points...absolute nonsense that Amaro didnt call around to at least a few teams to offer Lee last winter...he didnt just strike a deal with Seattle and that is 100% fact...regardless of what people in this city want to believe second point is opinion...Yes Wheels can be a tad grating but he is better than most analysts on other broadcasts....Sarge, on the other hand, as enjoyable as he is as a person, is among the worst...he still hasnt learned that more isn't better— TheLon
RichieAllen, first time I've laughed out loud in weeks reading these posts. I would also throw in Sarge. I love the guy as a former player and individual, but he's a hack at announcing. Painful to listen to.— John621- Hey Richie,hopefully Sarge will be carrying Wheels bags.good riddance both of them!— Wave1
- Does anyone know WHY Scott and LA are never do the television broadcasts?????????Really why?— Wave1
- they should have pickd up adam dunn off waivers come on raj...— DJ_Bootleggah
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