High & Inside: NL Notes
Mets and Braves trade outfielders
The New York Mets traded Ryan Church to the Atlanta Braves for Jeff Francoeur and cash yesterday in a swap of outfielders who had fallen out of favor with their teams.The rare deal between National League East rivals came with both teams below .500. The Mets are desperate for a spark, with stars Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado on the disabled list and also are looking toward 2010, preferring Francoeur's righthanded bat and strong throwing arm in right at spacious Citi Field. They received $270,218 as part of the trade to equalize salaries.
Francoeur makes $3,375,000 and is eligible for free agency after the 2011 season. Church, who makes $2.8 million, also can become a free agent after the 2011 World Series.
Maddux to be honored by Braves
Next Friday, Atlanta will retire the uniform number 31 of Greg Maddux, who solidified his Hall of Fame career as a member of the Braves.Maddux, 43, who retired after pitching for San Diego and the Los Angeles Dodgers last season, also will be inducted into the Braves Hall of Fame before the game against the Mets.
He ranks eighth in career wins with 355. He won four straight NL Cy Young Awards, and won 15 or more games in a record 17 consecutive seasons.
Maddux will join Hank Aaron (44), Eddie Mathews (41), Dale Murphy (3), Phil Niekro (35) and Warren Spahn (21) as former Braves players who had their numbers retired.
"It's a tremendous honor," he said. "I stared at those numbers for 11 years."
Number switch works for Wolf
The day before he faced the host Mets on Thursday, Dodgers pitcher Randy Wolf reached back to his days as a Phillie.In an effort to snap his string of seven winless starts, Wolf discarded the No. 21 he had been wearing and went back to No. 43, which he wore with his first major-league team.
The result was an 11-2 victory.
"There's not a baseball player that's not superstitious," said Wolf, who went 61/3 innings.
But he won the game
Tim Lincecum needed just nine outs against the weakest-hitting team in the National League.But the Giants pitcher, whose string of scoreless innings had reached 29, saw his no-hitter broken up by San Diego's Tony Gwynn Jr. in the seventh inning of the Padres' 9-3 loss Thursday in San Francisco.
Gwynn's Hall of Fame father broke up five no-hit bids in the seventh inning or later.
Noteworthy
Astros ace Roy Oswalt left in the seventh inning of last night's game against Washington with numbness in two fingers on his pitching hand. . . . The Cubs' Geovany Soto, the 2008 National League rookie of the year, was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left side muscle.Contact staff writer Kevin Tatum at 215-854-2583 or ktatum@phillynews.com.
This article contains information from the Associated Press.
