Bengie Molina Traded to the Texas Rangers

UPDATE: Wow. Turns out the PTBNL is Michael Main, the 24th overall pick in the 2007 draft. Now, Main did have a terrible 2009 in Single-A, going 4-6 with a 6.49 ERA, but he has rebounded this year to post an ERA of 3.45 and 7.1 K/9. His 2009 year was supposedly affected by a bout with a viral infection. Main has a ton of potential, can reach the mid-90s with his fastball, has a potentially plus curve, and is still just 21 years old. He was a first round pick for a reason, so obviously he has some upside. He's a no risk, high reward player. I can't believe Sabean got both Main and Ray for Molina. I can't believe what I'm about to say, but good job Brian Sabean.

Bengie Molina has been traded to the Texas Rangers for RHP Chris Ray and a player to be named later, as first reported by Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com. The Giants will also reportedly send about $2 million in cash to the Rangers.

First of all, Bengie Molina was a good Giant. He deserves credit for catching one of the best pitching staffs in the major leagues and a two-time Cy Young award winner and he was always an important veteran presence in the clubhouse. While he was never a great average hitter and had mostly below average OBPs, in 2007 and 2009 he hit 19 and 20 home runs, respectively, as the Giants cleanup hitter. He should've never been the cleanup hitter, but that isn't his fault. That being said, it was absolutely time for Molina to go. His line of .257/.312/.332 with an OPS of .644 just wasn't good enough to justify him being in the lineup. There's also the fact that a young catching prospect by the name of Buster Posey needed to be catching everyday. With Bengie gone, Buster will move to catcher, Uribe will slide over to third and Renteria will be manning shortstop on most days. The bottom line is that now the Giants will be putting their best players out on the field.

This deal is pretty surprising because I assumed the Giants weren't going to get much at all for Molina, but they ended up with two players. Chris Ray is a reliever with a fastball that runs up to 94-95 mph and a slider and splitter. His best year came in 2006 when he was the closer for the Baltimore Orioles. He had 33 saves, a 2.73 ERA, and a WHIP of 1.09. He missed the entire 2008 season recovering from Tommy John Surgery and came back to have a horrible year in 2009 when he had 7.27 ERA and a 2.01 WHIP!! However, he's recovered nicely this year, posting an ERA of 3.41, and should be a good addition to the bullpen. Don't expect the PTBNL to be anyone significant, but the fact that the Giants were able to get relief help and another player for one of the worst hitters in the lineup has to make Giants fans happy.

Even though Molina's season has been a struggle, you've got to appreciate his contributions to the Giants.