Angels Eyeing Backup Shortstops

I'd go for Carroll...he can play 2b, SS and 3b...and hits fairly well

I'd probably go for Eckstein...he won 1 world series with them already, and is a great contact guy who is usually nearly impossible to strike out.

Could the Sox have any chance of getting rid of Lugo. Eat a lot of salray maybe?

Felipe Lopez or Ronny Cedeno.

It would be great if the Cubs could land Juan Rivera.

By the way Tim, when you go to preview comments, it takes you back to the old format. I love the old format but I thought you'd want to know.

I love how this post is a showcase in JP Ricciardi's current love affair with mediocre middle infielders.

I would go with Eckstein. I've watched him play in St. Louis, and he is a solid glove and bat. Most importantly, I've never seen a major league ball player hustle more than Eckstein in my entire life.

I am not sure how you see Scutaro as the best bet, he may be the best FIT for the Angels, but the Jays LOVE Marco and won't be giving him up..and john mcdonald is our starting SS right now so he's not going anywhere..Eckstein is getting zero playing time right now and I've been saying for weeks we should trade him to LAA, it's not fair to keep a career starter on the bench on a one year deal, he needs to be dealt

I also find it funny the Jays have 3 short stops on the list lol.
I hope it's Eckstein, poor guy got screwed over this year, move to the Angels would be great for him. His D was not that great this year, and arm is p retty bad though.

What about Brandon Wood? Why would they want to get a vet when Wood could probably do just as well as these other names?

Eckstein would come the cheapest. He's buried in the Blue Jays doghouse. He'd bring them some great energy in the clubhouse and lineup. He'd probably give anything to get back there, and the Jays wouldn't ask for much in return. Scutaro might come cheap too because the Jays added Jose Bautista (another mediocre infielder).

I would love if the Jays could find a deal with the Angels for Eckstein. I have always been a fan of Reggie Willits. I know a swap for him for one month of Eckstein/Scutaro/MacDonald would be steep and unlikely but I think he would fit well in the Jays Line Up as a legitimate Leadoff guy and push Adam Lind into DH spot.

Lugo! Lugo! Lugo!

Dear Billy Beane: Please put Bobby Crosby on waivers. Thank you.

I agree about Brandon Wood. The Angels have a 15 games lead...it is over so you can afford to take a chance on Brandon Wood right now. He has cut his K-rate significantly over the last two months and is still hitting for power. What did this guy do to Mike Scioscia, I jst don't understand...

Eckstein isn't bad. He shouldn't cost anything other than his remaining salary.

However, the best options are still Wood and Rodriguez. Both are putting up sick numbers in AAA this year and both would probably do just as good of a job as any players on the list.

you can seriously just HAVE lugo, but i wouldnt want to screw up yours guys playoff hopes either lol

How about Renteria for a bag of baseballs?

I bet Adam Everett would be available assuming he would clear waivers. I know that doesn't make it right, though.

Bring Eckies back to the Halos!!!

The first option should just be to go to Brandon Wood.
The guy has been KILLING triple-A pitching for the last 2 months, and he's been starting at SS almost every game. With such a big lead, it certainly can't hurt to give him a shot.

If they absolutely want to acquire a SS, i think the best target has to be Eckstein. He's on a one year deal, he's a benchwarmer right now, and it wouldn't take a lot to get him. Plus, Halos fans would go NUTS if he came back, even as a back-up.

I agree with those of you saying Brandon Wood. He should be in the majors aleady as it is. The kid can flat out hit. And he's not too shabby in the field either. But for reasons known only to the Angels, he is on their sh*t list.

The fact they are even discussing trading for someone when they already have a great option leads me to believe Wood will be traded in the off-season. I hope for his sake he is, because he needs to be playing everyday in the majors right now!

I think the best guy would be Scutaro. He can hit for average and has some pop and plays SS, 2ND and 3RD with solid defense. I'm not sure if the Jays would be willing to give him up like BJays Fan said.

It would be a great story if the Angel were to bring back Eck so I would put him as my second fav. The only problem with Eck is that he only plays middle infield (mostly SS) while Scutaro plays 3RD as well. While 3RD is not a weak spot with Figgi and Quinlan, it would be nice to add a guy who can play all three.

As for Wood, the Angels gave him a chance earlier and he didn't produce. Yeah, he may be tearing up AAA, but so was Sean Rodriguez and you can see how he's hitting. I don't think the Angels want to go through the growing pains again with a young player so they're looking for a veteran. I'm not saying that Wood isn't in the future plans because he is and he is a huge part of it, however the Angels are looking outside the organization for an EXPERIENCED veteran who adds depth to all three positions and can hit if one of the starters goes down.

"I would love if the Jays could find a deal with the Angels for Eckstein. I have always been a fan of REGGIE WILLITS."

Isn't it true that if the Angels were to trade him he would have to clear waivers since he's on the 40-man roster?

Let me put this to bed. The Angels will not trade Reggie Willits for David Eckstien. Eck would have to be a salary dump. That's it.

No, I know and I understand that, but I was just asking in case maybe the Angels were after Scutaro or someone to that stature. I'm not sure if Eck would just be a salary dump though. I mean his contract is done after this year and while he is making 4.5 mil, and if Tim's numbers above are correct, then he only gets another 830K. I think that if the Jays were to trade him they would ask for a low level prospect with a high upside. Eck can still play, you know!

Forget Brandon Wood. He's not ready. Don't know if he ever will be; despite his glowing minor league stats, he's looked absolutely overmatched at the major league level. 33 K's in 97 MLB ABs, with only 2 HR and .134 /.160 / .260 batting #s.

Eckstein is my choice. I love the guy. Don't understand why Cito Gaston turned on him... but I love him in a utility role for a contending team.. the guy knows how to win.!

"Second baseman Howie Kendrick, who strained his left hamstring on the bases on Wednesday in the Angels’ 6-5 loss to Oakland, has been put on the 15-day disabled list.

To replace Kendrick on the roster, infielder Brandon Wood has been recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake and he is in the starting lineup for the series opener against Texas Rangers.

Wood will be making only his second career start at shortstop, having played primarily at third base in parts of two major league seasons. He made his first start at short on May 24 in a game against the White Sox in Chicago.

In 23 games this season he has hit only .125 (8 for 64)."
OC Register

Still not sure if it's 100% true cuz Angels website hasn't posted it yet. If that's the case though and Howie is really on the DL then the Angels definetly need to go after a vet SS, however they need to do it soon if they want their acquisition to be on the playoff roster.

Yep, It's confirmed. Kendrick to the DL, Wood to the Angels.

"I would love if the Jays could find a deal with the Angels for Eckstein. I have always been a fan of REGGIE WILLITS."

People seriously still want this bum? I’ll tell you, you can get the same production out of a cardboard cutout of Bonds that you pinch-run for after if it manages to draw a walk. Infact, make it a wood cutout with the bat stretched across the plate ~ if the pitcher manages to make contract with the bat. It would generate more power than you will ever see out of Willits…

What's wrong with Willits? He is a great leadoff typ player because he sees a lot of pitches (pretty much has a full count every time he's up), consistently gets on base, steals bases and scores runs. That would be a great pickup for the Jays who need a leadoff hitter although there is no way the Angels are trading him for Eckstein.

Whats wrong with Willits? I think its more ~ what isnt wrong with him…

The only game Willits really brings is his ability to stand at the plate and not swing the bat; something he does better than anyone in the game. To give you an idea, notorious non-swinger Dunn swings at about 40% of the pitches he sees ~ Willits is consistently around 33%. Then when he does swing, its almost a guarantee to be a ground-ball, infield pop-up or a weak LD single that will end as a slow-roller to a corner OFer. That being the case, all that needs to be done to basically eliminate Willits from having any effect on the game is to throw him strikes with the infield in. I mean, 17% of his career hits have been of the infield/bunt variety and most of the others are rather slow grounders that find a hole ~ minimize them and you have a guy who walks and might get an occasional single. About half way through the year last year, pitchers realized this and the end results (when coupled with his BAbip coming back to earth) are rather noticable:

.249/.360/.294/.654 ~ Willits since the break last year.
.232/.344/.283/.626 ~ Willits the last 365 days
Compare that to:
.274/.344/.400/.744 ~ the AL Leadoff-Hitter average.

Specifically, this is a 07 month to month breakdown of Willits ~ see if you can tell when the scouting report changed:

.345/.424/.345/.769 ~ April
.330/.430/.390/.820 ~ May
.342/.432/.430/.862 ~ June
.231/.337/.269/.606 ~ July
.250/.367/.276/.643 ~ August
.279/.355/.338/.693 ~ Sept

Willits is (to be) a 28 YO low-contact, purely slap hitter with absolutely no power and questionable D ability. And he doesn’t run that much, has questionable running skills to begin with and will only steal less as he ages and gets on base fewer times. His Runs scored is a result of the team he is on, but his complete lack of ability to make it past first will result in a minimal amount on the average team. Willits is a nice guy to have on the bench as a pinch-runner, but should be no where near a starting lineup ~ he is essentially a corner-outfielder (since he cant/shouldn’t be playing center) with the patience of a cow and the bat of a AA backup catcher…

Like I said, you could probably get the same out of a card-board cutout… As far as what the Jays have right now; they could look at Joe Inglett who is twice the leadoff hitter Willits is. And seeing as Joe can play multiple positions, many of them being a spot where lack of offensive ability is kind of expected, he would stand a much better chance of actually staying in the lineup.

I think Scutaro's availablity depends on what the jays have in plans for Shortstop next year. A lot of people are in favor of moving Aaron Hill back to short and playing Inglett at 2nd, which would greatly improve the situation. The only issue is what will Hills defense be at short I suspect if Scutaro can play Short well I think Hill can.

The issue is then if thats the case where do the Jays add a Offensive type player. Because if Hill moves to short then the Infield is done depending on what you do with the Catcher Situation and by Done I mean Locked up for that season. Then you have the OF situation/DH with Wells/Rios/Snider/Lind most assume Lind then plays DH.

I really like that situation actually except for Overbay at 1st. This team is in a serious need for a power hitting First Basemen if thats the situation.

Darkstar:

You are completely wrong about Willits. Stats don't show anything about this guy, it's not like he plays every game of every year, so in reality you have no clue what this guy
could do when given a chance to consistently play everyday for years. The only stats I see on this guy are what he did in '07 when he was given a chance to play everyday. Even then he only had 430AB and played in only 136GM and that was only because of injuries to the Angels outfield starters. He hit .293 in those AB's and stole 27SB. Imagine what he could do in 155-160GM and 500-600AB, so I dont know how you could base a scouting report on a plyer after one season where he only played everyday for half of it. If that's the case and we want to predict a guy's future off of one season then lets take a look at HOF 3RD baseman Mike Schmidt after his rookie season:

132GM .196 18HR 52RBI 136K 324/373/697 (OBP/SLG/OPS)

He finished his career with a .267 548HR 1595RBI 380/527/907

Did you ever believe he would be one of the greatest 3RD baseman in history?

Or A-Rod in 1995:

48GM .232 5HR 19RBI 264/408/672

Did you ever think he would be the youngest player EVER to 500HR?

Or how about Mickey Mantle in 1951:

96GM .267 13HR 65RBI 349/443/792

He finished with:

.298 536HR 1509RBI 421/557/978

Did you (or anyone else because you were probably not around but maybe you were) believe that he would end up being a Yankee legend or one of the greatest ballplayers of alltime?

Should I keep going on because I'm sure there are plenty more?

Lou Gehrig in 1926:

.313 16HR 112RBI 420/549/969

Yeah the batting average and RBI are up but did you expect him to hit 493 career HR, be in the HOF and give one of the greatest speeches in the history of the human race?

I'm gonna stop here because I don't want to spend all night typing all of the players' stats. If this isn't enough for you then I don't think you'll ever understand.

Angels suck, Willits sucks, I don't think you will ever understand.

Have fun with another first round sweep.

"Angels suck, Willits sucks, I don't think you will ever understand.

Have fun with another first round sweep."

Oh I know it's difficult for you Yanks fans for your team not to be in the playoffs, but dont hate on the Angels. Good points though... Way to add absolutely nothing to the conversation. Now go s**k a d***!

Actually, after the 1926 season Gehrig had, I fully expected a groundbreaking speech out of him at some point in his life. I think it was all those rbis that convinced me.

"Actually, after the 1926 season Gehrig had, I fully expected a groundbreaking speech out of him at some point in his life. I think it was all those rbis that convinced me."

HAHA...You are sooooooooo funny!

…Huh? You cant be serious, right?

Here are a couple of the problems with your comparisons:

1) Your point with that group of players is the exact opposite of the situation Willits is in! Willits played over his head and has gotten worse the longer he has played as pitchers became more familiar with him, the players you mention played ok to bad in their first tastes of the majors before they learned the game and became greats.

2) Those players were young, Willits is old! And I mean, its atleast a 5 year difference in age here!!!

Here is a player by player breakdown:
Mantle ~ Drafted 1949 at age 17; season you mention is 2 years later when he was 19!
ARod ~ Drafted 1993 at age 17; season you mention is 2 years later when he was 19!
Schmidt ~ Drafted 1971 at age 20; season you mention is 2 years later when he was 22!
Gehrig ~ Signed 1923 at age 20; season you mention is 2 years later when he was 22!

Willits ~ Drafted in 2003 at age 22; has played 5 professional seasons and is going to turn 28(!) before the start of 2009…

…That’s 4 players 22 Years or younger who had 2 professional seasons VS a 27 YO with 5 professional seasons under his belt, as well as full college experience… Its kind of like comparing a 15 year old bicycle to a brand new Harley…

3) Huh? How can you compare 27YO Willits, whose skills are basically Slap/Zero-Power/Slight-Speed/Ques-D/Good-Eye to guys who were 22YO full 5-tool HOFers? Seriously, how does that even begin to make sense to you?

At best, we are probably looking at Scott Podsednik as a perfect comparable player to Willits ~ and the stats actually match fairly well. Pods of course doesn’t have quite the OBP, but has much more speed and quite a bit more power. Both players didn’t get a real taste of the majors till 26/27 and both enjoyed early success which was not relative to their true abilities. Now, most people are shocked that Pods found a team desperate enough to give him a job this year; a couple years down the road Willits will probably be in a similar boat...

Im not comparing Willits to these players Im just making my point that you cant judge a guys' future based on one year of playing time. I know hes not gonna be a HOF but he could still end up being a great player you never know, thats my point!

...No, you cant just say "well so&so didnt do good one year so anyone can go on to be great" ~ you have to have some foundation for such a statement. Now, that foundation has to come in some type of ability ~ and Willits just doesnt have any. Sure, he hardly ever swings the bat which means he takes some walks. Sure, when he does swing its a defensive slap that has a small chance of finishing an infield hole for a single. Sure, he can run a tiny bit and might be able to steal a base every now and then. Sure, he has a bit of speed so he isnt horrible on D, but he isnt very good either. But all of those things also apply to me ~ does that mean I have a chance to be great as well? And to top it off, he's 27 years old at this point ~ his learning period should be over and...

Random scrub, 5th-OFer type who might manage to catch lightning in a bottle every so often because he does have some speed ~ ie, Pods all over again...

Im done arguing about this, I made my point and you made yours, were never goona see eye to eye.

Yeah, your point = “I think he can be great because I want him to be great”
My point = “you cant be great when you don’t have anything resembling actual talent”

…but I guess it’s the difference between a rah-rah team fan and a realistic mind…

I would trade Willits for Scutaro, but Eck, no way!

I don't think Willits has (or should have) a future on the Angels. Things might be different if Willits was an infielder (SS-2B) but I don't think any team needs a light-hitting outfielder. If the Jays think they need one, then I'm all for a trade for Scutaro. e would be a great backup for '08 and '09 as well.

"My point = “you cant be great when you don’t have anything resembling actual talent”

Im not sure how much you study ESPN or MLB.com but I know it has to be a lot, right? Cuz you think you know everything about everyone and everything about the history of the game but maybe if you watched a baseball game (maybe an Angels game perhaps) and you saw Reggie play then you would realize my point. He is a valuable player to any club and he obviously has some talent otherwise he wouldnt be here. Maybe your jealous because you wanted to go pro but sucked so bad nobody would look at you, it that it? Is that why all you do is complain? Do you even have a fav team or are you just a Star Wars geek (hence Darkstar) that thought baseball stats would be interesting to memorize?