The Angels announced today that they’ve outrighted five players from their 40-man roster, all of whom elected free agency rather than accepting an assignment to Triple-A. First baseman Justin Bour, righties Nick Tropeano and Luis Garcia, southpaw Miguel Del Pozo, and two-way player Kaleb Cowart are all now on the open market.
It isn’t terribly surprising to see this handful of players sent packing in advance of an offseason that could be laden with change. The three most experienced names bounced from the roster were all eligible for arbitration. MLBTR projected Bour to earn $2.9MM, Garcia to take home $2.3MM, and Tropeano to cost $1.1MM.
That trio fell shy of expectations in 2019, making the salaries untenable. Signed for lefty power, Bour hit just .172/.259/.364 in a Halos uniform. Garcia managed a 4.35 ERA in 62 innings, but carried a suboptimal combination of 8.3 K/9, 4.8 BB/9, and 1.9 HR/9. And Tropeano struggled both in brief MLB action and at Triple-A.
Del Pozo was acquired in August for a trial run, but surrendered 11 earned runs in his first 9 1/3 frames of MLB action. The 27-year-old had shown enhanced strikeout numbers this year at Triple-A, so could be an interesting target. It’s unclear what’s next for Cowart, who attempted to add pitching to his already versatile set of defensive positions. He walked nearly as many batters as he struck out in 17 appearances in the upper minors, working to a cumulative 10.19 ERA.
wouldnt be surpised if Klentak claims back Garcia given the team’s question marks in the pen next year. his pricetag shouldnt be too outlandish. perhaps even Tropeano as well.
oh derp they were already outrighted. always miss that.
Halso need at least 2 legit starters, a catcher and 3B to have a real chance competing. No more of this buying starters on the cheap hoping to catch lightening in a bottle.
A catcher plz!!!
Wish they would’ve kept Maldonado.
Maldonado is not very good and I’d much rather have Patrick Sandoval.
Also, if the Angels want Maldonado, they can easily add him. I just hope they have something better in mind.
Sandoval posting no wins and 4 losses only adds to the anemic Angel rotation.. he’s fodder
He’s a 6th or 7th starter, so by definition he’s fodder. This staff seems to need 12 starters every year.
Still looking at starting pitchers wins and losses as a measuring stick, huh?
They limited his innings so he only pitched 3 innings for the most part when he got called up in August
Angels can do better than Maldonado.. Not sure whats out there available, But they need to think of terms of a good young C. Instead of this revolving door. they been using that few years. A good defensive C. Give up some offense .
i mean, Fletcher isn’t a huge power hitter, but he is a pretty darn good fielder and gets on base
The Angels have a 3rd baseman. He made the all-star team last year. They also have Cozart making 13 million dollars.
The point is, they are not gong to spend money or use a spot for a 3rd baseman. So, you better hope Thais, Cozart or LaStella perform. Worse comes to worse, they’ll put Fletcher and 3rd and Rengifo at 2b.
For better or for worse, they are not going to add a firstbaseman either.
So your saying they are all in on Rendon and Cole?
I’m about as sure as sure can be that the Angels are not going to be in on Rendon.
How do you know that?
Every once in a while I hear things from people on the inside. I have not heard anything about this.
I just don’t think this is where the Angels are going to spend big bucks. Spending 180+ million (conservative estimate) on a 3rd baseman is not where the Angels are going to spend their money.
I agree. 0.000000% chance the Angels make a bid on Rendon.
Pitching Pitching Pitching Catcher (probably NOT Grandal either)
Youre right excpet a 3b. Id sub that with they need to jettision Pujols and pick up an corner infielder that has a high OBP.
By jettison do you mean release?
They don’t need a 3B. Starting pitching. Catcher will likely be defense first to help with getting their pitching staff in order.
3rd base? What’s wrong with our current infield mix?
They don’t need a 3B man, pitching, pitching, and a catcher. Fletcher had a 3.8 WAR and is a GG finalist at 3B. La Stella was an All Star last season and also plays 3B. Between the 2 they have 2B, and 3B covered. With Simmons at SS and Luis Rengifo as utility IF their IF is good to go. If they can sign 2 top starters to head the rotation with Ohtani, Heaney, and Canning plus a few other top prospects the Angels should all set to make a post season run in 2020…
That Garcia trade was really odd. Took away the Angels only lefty.
I guess this adds an extra $5-6 mil to the budget (arb #’s according to MLBTR). Need all they can get to make some significant moves
There’s no point in having a lefty BP pitcher who stinks. That opens a spot to upgrade their lefty. I think that’s a sign of finally being serious about upgrading the pitching staff.
I think these were a good call….hoping to see some good trades and or free agents signed soon.
I think the Angels will attempt to add a top of the rotation starter. They may have to settle on Wheeler. Then add a catcher and a back of the rotation starter.
I don’t think they’ll do anything with the offense, and just hope is is a lot healthier than last year.
Maybe Jared Weaver?
And you point being? I can imagine your point. Your point is the Angels tried to band-aide some positions last year by signing three players to one year contracts.
The reason they used band-aids last year is so they would have money to spend this year. I think the Angels have about 60 million before they hit the threshold. They can even drip over the threshold a little and it wont cost them too much because they are sure to be under the threshold when Pujols contract expires.
What the Angels did last year was smart. I’m surprised how few fans see it.
Hello, real cops?
The one year deals were genius in planning for this off season. Not necessarily who they signed, but the plan in general. It could have worked out a little better, but with the injuries and death, the season was doomed. We have plenty of money to fill the rotation and catcher with top players and stay under the tax line.
Hey Mac. In having to settle for Wheeler, do you think Cole may not be as probable as people think?
I think Cole is 50-50 at best. If you ask me to predict, I’ll predict the Angels, but I’ll take the field. Boras is a huge factor. If we can’t get Cole, why would we think we can get Strasburg?
That leaves Wheeler. And I’m not sure they can get him.
There is room for optimism, I’m just not optimistic. It wouldn’t surprise me if the Angels add two solid starters and a catcher. And I’d be happy if one of those solid starters was Wheeler.
Zero surprises here. The Garcia trade was a head scratcher until you read all of Eppler’s comments about velocity being the #1 indicator of success.
I don’t see any of these guys signing MLB contracts this off season. Maybe Garica gets a one year deal somewhere, but that’s it.
I can still see Justin Bours spring training home run that seemingly cleared the zip code. But I guess thats the reason hes on this list: that memory was last March.
Frankly, all of these guys are useless at the MLB level and did the club a favor by opting out.
Saved the organization $6 by doing it. Let’s spend that money wisely.
I know it wouldn’t save us money, but we might as well just release Cozart too. He is going to be out most of the year anyways.
Anaheim had it with the Bourish behavior.
3rd base is Fletcher’s, possibly rotating with Cozart, if he’s still around. Fletch was nominated for a Gold Glove at 3rd. LaStella was an All Star 2nd baseman, and will hopefully be back at 100%.
Pitching and catching is what they need, and I do like Maldonado, and he will be available. Theiss(?) Should be able to cover 3rd, as well as first, if needed.
I hope 3rd base isn’t Fletcher’s He’s a much better second baseman than 3rd baseman. It wouldn’t surprise me if Fletcher ends up being he best defensive 2nd baseman in baseball. It would surprise me if he finished outside the top five.
How some of these guys have maintain staying in the league is mind blowing
I’m especially glad to see Bour and Tropeano go.