What does Michael Young have left?

Primarily, plenty of playing time available to him, which wasn't going to be the case as long as he remained with the Texas Rangers. Young hit .265 or worse in May, June, July and August of last season. Manager Ron Washington was unwaveringly loyal to him then but made it clear that he wouldn't be in 2013. Young, 36, will play under a skipper who's similar to Wash in terms of devotion, and the Phillies don't have any prospects at his position who are even remotely the caliber of Texas'.

Frankly, though, Young probably needed a change of scenery. He receives too much credit from some in the media for "the way he goes about his business." He and his club also endured a lot of criticism for, at this stage of his career, his shortcomings as a hitter, which were magnified because of the backdrop of the rest of the Rangers' offense as well as Washington's unwillingness to drop him down or even remove him from the lineup.

Young's bat speed is lacking, and his grounder-to-fly rate increased from 1.79 in 2011 to 2.22 last season. He's never been a power hitter, and he certainly isn't one now. But Derek Jeter learned to survive with a similarly deteriorating profile, and Young still has a great deal of knowledge about his craft. He's no longer very good, but he can still be pretty solid. No one wants a solid player these days?