Pierzynski 12 Posted December 8, 2005 Share Posted December 8, 2005 DALLAS -- The Reds did not stop wheeling and dealing on their final day at baseball's Winter Meetings. On Thursday, they acquired infielder/outfielder Tony Womack from the Yankees for Minor Leaguers Kevin Howard and Ben Himes. New York will also send Cincinnati $900,000 in cash. "We feel that Tony is the prototypical National League-type player," Reds general manager Dan O'Brien said. "He's multi-dimensional, multi-purpose in being able to play the infield and the outfield. And he brings a very important ingredient to our club that we are missing, that's speed." Earlier in the day, O'Brien formally announced another trade that sent first baseman Sean Casey to Pittsburgh for pitcher Dave Williams. Womack will make $2 million in 2006 as part of a two-year contract he signed with the Yankees last year. He opened the 2005 season as New York's starting second baseman but struggled and batted .249 with 15 RBIs in 108 games. The 36-year-old lost his job to rookie Robinson Cano and was shifted to the outfield and a reserve role. Reds manager Jerry Narron plans to use Womack regularly in a variety of positions, but primarily at second base. "I see him playing a great deal," Narron said. "I think last year he went to a situation where he wasn't going to play every day. He wants to play. It's great to see. You want guys who want to be out on the field. The big thing for us is he's another energy guy and another speed guy." After breaking in with the Pirates in 1993, Womack moved to the Diamondbacks from 1999-2002, and was part of the 2001 World Series champion team. He bounced from the Rockies to the Cubs and to the Cardinals, where he batted a career-best .307 in 2004 for the NL champions. Womack is a career .273 hitter and, despite his speed, has a .316 on-base percentage. With the Yankees last season, his on-base percentage dipped to .276. O'Brien said Womack's acquisition would not affect the Reds' approach with veteran free agent infielder Rich Aurilia, who was offered arbitration Wednesday night. Howard, an infielder exposed to Thursday's Rule 5 Draft but not selected, batted .296 for Double-A Chattanooga in 2005. Himes, an outfielder, batted .320 with Class A Sarasota this past season. http://www.southsiders.net/index.php?showt...t=0entry66732 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balta1701 Posted December 9, 2005 Share Posted December 9, 2005 I loved some of the articles last season about how Womack was having basically the worst season for a Yankee outfielder in like 100 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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