Having lost five in a row and eight of their last ten games, the Angels remade their roster a bit last night by releasing Bobby Abreu and calling up top prospect Mike Trout. Trout will play everyday as the team hopes he injects some life into their season, but Abreu’s situation is a little less rosy.
The 38-year-old outfielder/DH was hitting just .208/.259/.333 in 27 plate appearances before being cut loose. Although his power output has steadily declined with age, Abreu still offers one of the game’s best batting eyes and has stolen at least 20 bases every year since 1998. Abreu also has a track record of durability, having played in no fewer than 140 games every season since breaking into the league full-time. His ability to hit left-handed pitching has disappeared later in his career, and defense was never his strong suit.
The Halos are on the hook for Abreu’s $9MM salary, less the pro-rated portion of the league minimum if another team signs him to a Major League contract. He was vocal about his dislike for his reduced role, and the Angels were “trying feverishly” to trade him at the outset of the season. They appeared to have a taker in the Indians before the deal fell apart. Now that he’s available on the open market for the most minimal of costs, what does the future hold for Abreu?
