The Angels have agreed to a minor league deal with veteran infielder Phil Gosselin and invited him to Major League Spring Training, per The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya (Twitter link).
Gosselin, 32, spent the 2019-20 seasons with the Phillies and batted .255/.312/.363 with three homers and eight doubles in 170 trips to the plate. The well-traveled utilityman has seen MLB time with the Braves, D-backs, Rangers, Reds and Pirates in addition to his work in Philadelphia. Defensively, Gosselin has spent the bulk of his MLB time at second base, although he has experience at all four infield spots and has seen time in the outfield corners as well.
The Angels have a full infield, with David Fletcher at second base, offseason trade acquisition Jose Iglesias at shortstop and Anthony Rendon at third base. Gosselin will compete with former top prospect Franklin Barreto, waiver claim Robel Garcia and 24-year-old Luis Rengifo for backup time around the infield. Barreto is out of minor league options, which likely helps his case, but it’s possible the Halos could carry more than one backup infielder.
Where’s the but can he pitch crowd?
He apparently went to the same high school as Tim Cooney.
Oh, it’s here, as it was always going to be.
This is it. This is the final piece to put them in the playoffs!
32 years old, no real track record of success, but are you guys silly? He’s still going to send it.
How’s his curveball?
8 kids, I guess one had to make it big
During the time of year when almost every team is signing depth. The Angels sign depth.
Exactly
This guy had an exciting spring training. Then, even with the shutdown, he carried it over to the big show for a few months. He eventually cooled off, but I like his bat off the bench. Fun player.
Ok, I understand this is a depth signing… but how many depth OF signings do you need? This is outrageous at this point. Go get some pitching!
circle back when you know what you’re talking about
I’m sorry, I was under the impression that Gosselin was an OF’er. I didn’t realize that he was a backup IF. It makes it a fine move imo. I just didn’t see the logic in signing yet another depth OF’er whenever they have Fowler, Schebler, Walsh, and then Adell and Marsh coming up. They still need pitching, but this move makes more sense now. My mistake.
You’re right Ranger – depth is good and every team needs it but I want them to sign 2 more RP’s. There are plenty still available. Get Rosenthal.
Angels got their Phil
He’s not blocking anyone in AAA.
It does appear that Minasian puts a premium on defense when signing minor league guys. He’s also revered more towards ground ball rate for pitchers than Eppler, who loved nothing more than velocity.
Don’t forget there’s a taxi squad. That would be perfect for guys like this. that way he definitely won’t be taking ABs from a young guy in AAA.
Good for him; although I doubt he’ll see much, if any, time in the bigs.
This dude rakes and hits bombs!
Rakes leaves maybe.
Only Phil Gosselin can prevent forest fires…
FYI, add a comma between ‘leaves’ and ‘maybe’ for a more sarcastic effect.
But can he pitch?
The question is can he pitch the 8th.
Been begging for the Angels to get Rosenthal for the 8th. He makes the pen look solid on paper
Get him to close and make Iglesias the Relief Ace.
It’s a huge difference.
If a team doesn’t have an above average bullpen or rotation, It makes it very hard to win.
Right now, if things break right, the Angels have the pieces in place to have a mediocre pen and rotation.
If things break wrong, they still may have a mediocre rotation, but their pen will stink.
I feel like Iglesias gets the closer job, but I’m fine with either or. Depth gives options, and the Angels could shorten the game with a strong bullpen, and Rosenthal gets them there.
Sigh, he’s an excellent bench player. He’ll be missed in Philly. Truly clutch off the bench.
Trout can show him where to get the best ‘cheese wit’ in Orange County…
Plan the parade
Depth is not bad at any position. The defenders we have snatched up are very versatile.
Going to miss you Phil. This guy rakes left handed pitching and is a great right handed bat off the bench. Not really good at any position but not terrible at any either. I’m sure him and Trout will become instant Eagle fan buds
It must be a great feeling to criticize a struggling team for every move they make that’s not to your liking.
How else can you explain, shadows in the rain.
Thank God, now Roster Resource can finally remove Franklin Barreto as our backup IF.
I feel like Gosselin has been a little bit underrated for a while now. He provides versatility and can hit a little bit. Nice depth signing.
sadness
Anahiem, you will love this guy. Can plug him in anywhere on the field and has deceptive pop. Nice bench piece!
Oh please. He has a negative WAR over the last FIVE seasons. Versatility is nice….but if you can’t play at even replacement level, then it really doesn’t do much to help turn a team around
A multi-position depth piece to spell rendon/iglesias/fletch over 162 games shouldn’t be judged by WAR. It fills a need.
IMHO, any versatility he brings is negated by his under replacement level performance five years running. If the team isn’t going to bring in stronger performers, they’d be better off calling up AAA guys as needed instead. At least you’d be developing talent for the future, assessing talent, showcasing potential trades, etc.
Another low risk and even lower reward pickup by the Halos. Yay?
I’m sure Trout is feeling great about the coming season!
I grew up in Anaheim moved to Culver City after marriage, and now live in the San Francisco Bay Area. I loved the OC and was nervous about moving to LA and learned how amazing LA was and how misguided I was. I would trade my current home, which is 3 times the value, to be back home in SoCal. Does not matter, the grass is greener on the other side . Appreciate what you have.
FYI my kids are here and once they are in college i’m heading south.
WTF!? The Angels signed the dad from KatePlus8?
Gosselin and Slegers could provide sneaky good cheap value for the Halos. Definitely some competition for Regnifo and replacement over Dillon Peters for Slegers in the bullpen.