I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas. I hope Santa didnt bring you too many Ken Giles jerseys (I still have the Cliff Lee shirt my mother-in-law gave me in 2009, a couple weeks after his trade). There is not too much happening on the Phillies front, given the holidays, but this morning MLB Trade Rumors linked this morning to a piece on Baseball America written by former Phillies first round pick Greg Golson,
Golson, now 30 years old and playing in Mexico, writes he is hoping to get a look from a scout:
Aside from the big leagues, the priority on winning has never been so evident as it is here in Mexico. Baseball is a big deal on the West coast of Mexico and even more so in Los Mochis. When the team got hot, fans would see me walking around town and would wish me luck and talk about the games with excitement and gratitude. It was difficult to miss Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s (at home), but there is something motivating and gratifying about sacrifice.
My second year here in Mochis, I am set to miss another Christmas and New Year’s, but there is the same feeling of hope and determination. Currently, we sit in first place, and as we prepare for the playoffs, there is a sense of excitement in the air again. When I was younger, I lost my fire to win and focused all my attention on selfish development. At the age of 30 with 12 years of professional baseball under my belt, I play in a league that is somewhat scouted but more often than not, there are fans in the section designated for scouts behind home plate, but I see this as a good thing for the time being.
Golson is playing alongside former Phillies prospects D'Arby Myers and Sebastian Valle.
Golson has had his moments down there:
¡GO, GO, GOLSON! Doblete de Greg Golson trae la 5ta para nuestros Cañeros. #EmpujenCañeros #FuerzaVerde @GoGoGolson
— Cañeros Los Mochis (@verdesxsiempre) December 11, 2015
In 71 at bats, Golson is batting .378.
Golson was drafted by the Phillies in the first round of the 2004 amateur draft. In 2008, Golson made his Major League debut with the Phillies, going hitless in six at bats. Golson was mostly used as a pinch runner down the stretch for the soon-to-be champs, picking up a stolen base for the Phillies. Prior to the 2009 season, the Phillies traded Golson for another former first round pick: John Mayberry, Jr. It was a swap of disappointing players who had high promise. The Phillies got more out of Mayberry than the Texas Rangers did Golson (one at bat, total).
Golson had a couple seasons in which he reached the Yankees, appearing in 33 games over two years, but has not appeared in a Major League game since 2011. Read his piece here.
