OAKLAND, Calif., July 25 (UPI) -- The Chicago White Sox Thursday traded former All-Star second baseman Ray Durham to the Oakland Athletics for minor league righthander Jon Adkins and cash considerations.
A 30-year-old switch-hitter, Durham is batting .299 with nine home runs and 48 RBI in 96 games. But his $6.3 million salary ranks third on the White Sox behind only Frank Thomas and Magglio Ordonez.
"The decision to trade Ray was not an easy one," Chicago general manager Ken Williams said. "Ray has been a part of our family since 1990 and we have helped him grow into an All-Star-caliber second baseman. However, in moving him, we not only pick up a quality arm in Adkins, but we also are afforded the opportunity to see Willie Harris play regularly at the major league level."
With the White Sox trailing first-place Minnesota by 14 games in the American League Central, Durham could be the first of a handful of high-dollar players leaving Chicago.
The Athletics, meanwhile, are are in the thick of the race for either the AL West title or the league's wild-cart berth.
In Durham, they get a versatile infielder who ranks seventh in the AL with 20 stolen bases and 71 runs scored and is 10th with a .390 on-base percentage. He is hitting .386 with 11 doubles, six homers, 18 RBI and 26 runs in his last 26 games.
Oakland has been using rookie Mark Ellis at second base, but Durham will replace him defensively and at the top of the batting order.
