The Phillies have traded second baseman Chase Utley and cash considerations to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for outfielder Darnell Sweeney and right-hander John Richy, Senior Vice President & General Manager Ruben Amaro Jr. announced today.
Sweeney, 24, was hitting .271 with 30 doubles, nine home runs, 49 RBI and 32 stolen bases in 116 games for triple-A Oklahoma City this season. A switch-hitter, Sweeney leads the Pacific Coast League in stolen bases, ranks fourth in games, tied for seventh in doubles and has the eighth-most hits (128). He was named to the Pacific Coast League All-Star team this year after being a Southern League All-Star last season. Sweeney was a 13th-round selection by the Dodgers in the 2012 draft out of the University of Central Florida.
Richy was 10-5 with a 4.20 ERA and one shutout in 22 games (18 starts) for single-A Rancho Cucamonga. He is currently tied for the California League lead in wins, ranks fifth in innings pitched (124.1), ninth in ERA and 10th in strikeouts (105) and is one of only five pitchers in the league to throw a shutout this season. The 23-year-old was selected in the third round of the 2014 draft out of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
A member of five National League East division champions (2007-11), two NL league pennant winners (2008-09) and the 2008 World Championship team, Utley leaves the Phillies after 13 seasons with a .282 batting average, 346 doubles, 233 home runs and 916 RBI in 1,551 games. In the 2009 World Series against the New York Yankees, he hit five home runs to tie Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson for the major league record.
Utley ranks in the Phillies top 10 in hits, doubles, home runs, extra-base hits, total bases, walks, runs scored, games and at-bats and is the all-time franchise leader in games played at second base (1,453). The 36-year-old, a six-time National League All-Star and four-time Silver Slugger Award winner, was the first-round selection (15th overall) by the Phillies in the 2000 draft out of UCLA.
