Texas acquired right-hander Brandon McCarthy from the Chicago White Sox in a five-player deal Saturday in which the Rangers gave up their 2003 first-round pick. John Danks, the ninth overall pick three years ago, and fellow right-handers Nick Masset and Jacob Rasner were sent to Chicago for McCarthy and outfielder David Paisano.
The 23-year-old McCarthy already has 65 major league appearances (12 starts), and is 7-9 with a 4.39 ERA. He has 117 career strikeouts while walking only 50 batters in 151 2-3 innings. McCarthy worked primarily out of the bullpen for the first time last season, and was 10th in the AL with 75 1-3 innings worked in relief. The Rangers plan to use him as a starter.
Danks split last season between Double-A Frisco and Triple-A Oklahoma, where he combined to go 9-9 with a 4.24 ERA in 27 games (26 starts). He has a career minor league record of 21-30 with a 4.20 ERA in 92 games (82 starts).
Masset made his major league debut last year with Texas, with no record and a 4.15 ERA in eight relief appearances. Rasner spent the entire 2006 season at Class-A Clinton, going 6-16 with a 5.41 ERA in 27 starts.
The 18-year-old Paisano appeared in 52 games for the White Sox Venezuelan Summer League team in 2006 and batted .338 with no home runs and 17 RBI.