Merry Christmas!

A new era in my life as a Cardinal fan has officially begun. While it was already clear he wouldn't be a part of the 2008 team, it's just refreshing to see So Taguchi officially donning a Phillies uniform. After several seasons of getting entirely too many at-bats, the "So Man," as Mike Shannon called him, has moved on. Whew. At least he hit that home run off Billy Wagner in the 2006 NLCS; that was pretty cool. While this signing was significant to my peace of mind, a bigger transaction took place this past week, even if it may be a bit discreet.

The Reds and Rangers came to terms on a deal that sent outfielder Josh Hamilton to Texas in exhange for pitchers Edinson Volquez and Danny Herrera. Perhaps lost in the circumstances of Hamilton's 2007 return (he overcame severe substance addiction) was how good a season he had. In only 298 at-bats, Hamilton hit .292/.368/.554 with 19 homers and 33 walks. Not only did he prove that after all of his problems he could be a major leagu player, he proved that he may just wind up being the threatening bat the Rays thought he would be in 1999. Hamilton won't turn 27 until May, and hitting in Texas, where baseballs fly and he'll land in the middle of the order, could lead to a monster 2008 campaign.

The primary return the Reds are getting in exchange for Hamilton is Volquez, who throws hard and was voted the top minor leaguer in the Rangers system last season. He made six starts for Texas near season's end, and he proved to be more than adequate as a major league starter already. While Volquez projects to be a solid starter at some point, he's exhibited control problems at times in his career, and he probably doesn't honestly have Hamilton's upside. As for the other pitcher involved, Danny Herrera, he throws a fastball that tops out in the low-to-mid 80s. Seriously. And he's 5'7" and 145 pounds. Again, I'm not making up any of this. Most of those bizarre oversized kids in the Little League World Series that list Derek Jeter as their favorite player are bigger than that. He's been successful in the minors for the most part, but he's getting older, and his skills set may have trouble transitioning to the major league level.

Everyone enjoy their holiday season. Merry Baseball to all!