DECEMBER 22: Drury’s contract is now official. The Angels announced the move on Thursday evening.
DECEMBER 20: The Angels have continued their active offseason, agreeing to a two-year contract with free agent infielder Brandon Drury. The deal reportedly guarantees the Wasserman client $17MM.
Drury earns the first multi-year guarantee of his career after a personal-best season. He looked to have settled into journeyman territory in recent years. After a few seasons playing a semi-regular role with the Diamondbacks, Drury suited up with all of the Yankees, Blue Jays and Mets from 2018-21. He hit just .211/.254/.360 in 137 games with Toronto from 2019-20, resulting in his outright at the end of that season. Drury played well in a limited look for the Mets the next year, but New York designated him for assignment at year’s end.
The Oregon native signed a minor league contract with the Reds shortly after the lockout. While the move generated little fanfare at the time, it might’ve been the best non-roster pact signed all offseason. Drury broke camp with the big league club and almost immediately played his way into everyday reps. He connected on 20 home runs in 92 games as a Red, posting a cumulative .274/.335/.520 line across 385 plate appearances.
While Cincinnati struck gold on their minor league arrangement with Drury, their 2022 season on the whole was a disaster. With the team well out of contention by the deadline, the impending free agent became one of the sport’s most obvious trade candidates. Cincinnati dealt Drury to the Padres for infield prospect Victor Acosta on deadline day. He played the final couple months in San Diego, offering solid but not spectacular production.
Drury connected on a grand slam in his first at-bat as a Padre, but his work from that point forward was roughly average. While connected on eight homers in 185 trips to the dish, that came with a meager 4.9% walk rate and a .290 on-base percentage. It was a similar story in the postseason, with Drury reaching base in just eight of 31 trips to the plate.
Relatively slow finish aside, Drury had an impressive year overall. He picked up 28 homers (plus one more in the postseason), managing a .263/.320/.492 line in 568 plate appearances. Cincinnati’s very hitter-friendly Great American Ball Park certainly played to his strength, as Drury posted a .298/.354/.561 mark in 223 trips to the plate at that venue. His .240/.299/.447 line in 345 plate appearances in all other parks was closer to average, but the Angels will take a shot on him bringing an above-average bat to Orange County.
Drury has an aggressive offensive approach and rarely walks, drawing free passes just 6.7% of the time this past season. He makes contact at an above-average clip and has solid power from the right-handed batter’s box, though. Drury’s 42.2% hard contact rate was around seven percentage points higher than the league mark. He put the bat on the ball on 81.2% of his swings this year, around five points better than average. This year’s 28-homer showing is an outlier compared to the rest of his career, but he’s topped 15 longballs on two other occasions while hitting north of .260 in three years.
The 30-year-old has some defensive flexibility. He’s played mostly second and third base throughout his big league career, logging around 1500 innings at both spots. Public metrics have been mixed on his work, though both Defensive Runs Saved and Statcast feel he’s better suited at the keystone than at the hot corner. Drury isn’t likely to win a Gold Glove, but he’s rated as a capable defender at both positions. He also has a decent amount of experience at first base and in the corner outfield, though he’s not a regular option in center field or at shortstop.
The Halos have focused on upgrading their roster with solid but not elite additions, attacking the lack of depth that has burned them repeatedly in recent seasons. They landed the final years of arbitration control over Gio Urshela and Hunter Renfroe via trade and inked Tyler Anderson and Carlos Estévez to free agent deals. Drury now looks as if he’ll join that mix, serving a similar role to Urshela as a righty-swinging infielder who can bounce around the diamond.
Second base seems likely to be Drury’s primary home. Playing him there regularly could push David Fletcher and/or Luis Rengifo more frequently to shortstop, where the Angels got nothing offensively this past season. Urshela can also occasionally factor in at shortstop while serving as injury insurance for Anthony Rendon at third base. Both players offer potential platoon complements at first base to the lefty-swinging Jared Walsh, as well.
There’s not a whole lot locked in around Shohei Ohtani, Mike Trout, Taylor Ward and Renfroe in the everyday lineup. General manager Perry Minasian and his group have worked hard to bring in better offensive options for manager Phil Nevin to move around the diamond in 2023, and the coaching staff has a few more weapons at their disposal than they had this past season.
They’ve kept those investments to relatively short terms, with Anderson’s three-year pact standing as the longest of their offseason commitments. There was plenty of uncertainty hanging over the organization with owner Arte Moreno exploring a sale of the franchise, but the front office has at least had plenty of leeway to make notable short-term commitments. Drury’s contract falls right in line with MLBTR’s prediction of two years and $18MM.
The specific financial breakdown has yet to be reported, but an even salary distribution would push the club’s payroll projection around $206MM, per Roster Resource. They’ll easily top this past season’s $189MM franchise-record Opening Day figure as they seek to compete with the defending World Series champion Astros, Mariners and upstart Rangers in the AL West. Regardless of the financial distribution, the deal will count for $8.5MM against the club’s luxury tax ledger. That’s suddenly a relevant consideration for the Halos, with Roster Resource projecting them for a CBT number around $220MM. That’s $13MM shy of the $233MM base tax threshold.
Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic first reported the Angels and Drury were in agreement on a two-year, $17MM contract.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Wow
If Aaron’s the judge, then Brandon’s the drury
I was brainstorming fantasy team names one time and Judge, Drury, Executioner might have been my favorite.
For the longest time I thought the saying was ‘Judge Judy and Executioner’, which I found confusing.
@jeff do you refresh the mlbtr page every 2 seconds so you can be the first one to comment and say “wow” ?
Absolutely
Wow
I agree
Seems like you refresh to comment 2nd
Oooooh sick burn bro!!
this may seem insane to say but with the contracts being put out there this one almost seems like a steal.
It’s also seems like Jeff’s comment is the most insightful 99% of the time .
Over pay
Lol it’s a 2 year deal with an AAV under $10m. It will have zero impact on any finances going forward. I’ll take Drury over Jack Mayfield all day.
It’s not your money. Dude put in his dues and worked hard to earn the contract. You’re just another whack Angels fan.
It’s not his money, but you know Moreno isn’t going to have an unlimited payroll, right? There are also limited roster spots. Not a great signing for a team like LAA.
Moreno isn’t going to even be the owner by the end of the year. Name the specific available players who should have taken this available roster spot or pipe down.
The Guardians, amazingly, finished as 1st runner-up for Drury’s services. They’ll now pivot to Jurickson Profar as their super-sub to be used around the diamond.
OIC2021
The Guardians, amazingly, finished as 1st runner-up for Drury’s services.
=============================
Do you post this every time a players signs with someone?
How do you figure? Are you aware of what the salaries are now? This is shockingly reasonable for what he brings to the party,
The only overpay is the Crack you. Bought before writing that. 30÷ hrs for a middle inf is overpay???
Winslow- He won’t replicate 30 HR again. I’d be surprised if he hit over 20. But really, he’ll probably hit around 15 with a sub-.230 average and sub-.300 OBP.
Probably comparable to the numbers he put up in Toronto
I’d say it’s a steal, and that Drury needs a new agent.
But where are the Angels going to play him? It’s really a bad situation for Drury in my opinion, unless your going to start him at second base.
That pops Fletcher out of the lineup, but I guess Drury is nice to have around in case of injuries or a prolonged slump.
Angel’s are looking mighty after adding Drury, they should work a blockbuster with the White Sox.
Tim Anderson, Yolbert Sanchez, Liam Hendriks and Yasmani Grandal
for
Livan Soto, Luis Rengifo, Logan O’Hoppe, Mickey Moniak, Sam Bachman and Fernando Guanare
something along those lines –
Unless the Angels are idiots, It doesn’t pop Fletcher out of the lineup. Rengifo is unplayable, and except for one outlier month, he can’t hit. Hopefully they can trade Rengifo for relief help.
Fletcher is likely the shortstop with Drury at second. That gives them an adequate middle infield defense. I would much rather have a bullpen arm.
@Halo11Fan Drury is a great pickup; he played well for the Mets but the old ownership was stuck on Conforto and let him walk. He can play right field to.
It will be fun to go to the Big A and watch him.
Rengifo’s numbers got better when the Angels were out of it. I am not sold on him. His numbers with RISP was under .200
Rengifo can’t hit? Go look at his minor league numbers. Most moronic and uniformed post in the history of MLBTR!
When the Angels were scuffling, losing 16 in a row, their Manager was fired, Trout was in the worst slump of his career and the Angels were striking out at a record pace, Rengifo was the only player consistently making contact. Only Matt Duffy had a lower contact rate than Rengifo on the Angels and he had about half the at-bats.
I think Rengifo had the 2nd or 3rd best batting average on the team.
It looks like he is really beginning to fulfill his potential.
Don’t give me that garbage that he can’t hit!
Go look at his major league numbers. He can’t hit. June 14th he was hitting 214 with a 267 OBP, got hot, which was a complete outlier, then had a 249 BA with a 267 OBP the last third of the year. He can’t hit or field.
Maddon was fired June 6th. Rengifo had a 649 OPS when Maddon was fired.
Rengifo hit 220 with RISP and 226 with men on base. You don’t have to throw anything close to the strike zone to get him out. He’ll take a HR cut at the rosin bag.
Your just looking at least season. There is a reason the Angels have stuck with Rengifo and Suarez It’s called talent. All teams have been burned by not trusting their talent evaluators. Why would they bat Rengifo so many times in the 3 hole? Bat speed, line drve ability, and he is a switch hitter. I guess you are saying the Angels should release him. Detroit, Pittsburgh, and. Florida would pick him up in a second and he becomes each teams #3 hitter, even Detroit with Baez. In Florida, they would combine Chisholm and Rengifo together.
Mark my words right here,today. Rengifo makes the All Star team in the next three years.
The data supports my position. He’s practically unplayable. And because he’s such a loud player, I highly doubt he’ll ever refine his game in such a way he’ll become usable.
He is by far the worst defensive player on the team. Without the shift, he’s unplayable up the middle. And because most major league pitchers are not stupid, he is only usable offensively when the game is not in doubt.
Unless the Angels are idiots, he shouldn’t be used.
Time to dump Fletcher from starting lineup.
724 OPS with the Padres, which is more realistic, to what to expect. OMG 28 homers. 16 came in that ban box in Cincinnati. Players leaving Cincinnati have a bigger drop off, than players leaving the Rockies. No Fletcher isn’t going to hit a ton of homers, but he is going to get on base, not strike out much and play Gold Glove caliber defense. Anywhere you play him on the infield. This guy, put up similar numbers with the Padres, as Adell was putting up. But hey why not pay Adell the same amount.
When healthy Fletcher is the best hit and run hitter in the league. He has the highest contact percentage of any player in the last 4 years combined. I think we see more hit and runs and run and hits plays this season.
Angelfan4life, Drury has some pop for sure, 20 plus homers is a lock with regular AB’s. I guess you haven’t look at any of his highlight reels. He was hitting bombs, and most of his HR’s were well over the fence. Ty
Joey Gallo 11M
Lol Zack Cozart 2.0 just not as costly.
My exact thought.
Keep it classy San Diego!
It could be if they’re planning on him starting 150 games like they did with Cozart. That came with no real bench depth. This situation involves a merry go round of infield depth that will likely be consistently above average to good across the board relative to playing time. So if Drury struggles, slide in Urshela, Rengifo, Fletcher, or whoever. What fans need to remember also is that some of these guys play the OF as well. I think there’s a big trade coming.
I hope they trade Rengifo for a solid bullpen piece or a solid # 5 SP. Sell high on him.
Or Mesa in Baltimore – Solid D at SS , speed, but only a 240 hitter. I believe Mesa will steal 50 bases and would be solid as our #9 hitter, setting the table as second leadoff.
Maybe they could trade Rengifo and a prospect for Stripling and Pederson again.
The Angels have made some solid moves.
The other player in that trade was Ward. Great no trade for the Angels.
Do you mean mateo?
This was my concern as well. A lot of similarities. Big outlier year thx to bandbox in Cinci.
What really concerns me is this leaves the hole at SS still open.
The up the middle defense lines up as a collection of Fletcher, Rengifo, Drury, Urshela, and probably Soto. Soto is the only true SS of that lot and I’m having a hard time believing that the Angels will pay both Urshela and Drury a collective $15M this season to sit on the bench.
I gotta believe a trade is still coming. It really puts a guy like Rengifo as the odd man out. He and Drury had similar WARs last year and basically serve the same infielder role. Doesn’t make sense to have them both on the roster unless one of them is receiving midnight grounders at SS to prep for this coming season.
Change of scenery swap… O’Dell for Jose Barrero
Terrific signing by the Angels. He fits in perfectly.
The Angels made a plan for this off-season and have executed it really well.
Yep. They gotta do well and get Shohei excited for an extension!
He’s replacing an offensive dud in Fletcher. This can only increase the offense.
Makes zero sense. They already have Gio Urshela and Anthony Rendon
2B.
Rengifo ans Fletcher.
It’s a bad signing because they already have 4 infielders for 2 spots, none really SS. Rendon and Gio at 3rd, and Rengifo and Fletcher at 2nd. Now you add Drury?
I know they’ve been injury prone but that made Gio a solid add(or Drury without the addition of Gio). Its just very odd to add a 5th person in the mix for 3b/2b. Sure Rengifo and Flletcher can play a little SS but they should not be full time(and I don’t buy Gio playing SS either).
Not to mention, this doesn’t factor in their top hitting prospect reached AA last year and could be up sometime this year.
They money could’ve been spent much better in the bullpen.
Maybe they can make a trade for Anderson or Crawford. Maybe dangle Soto, Silseth, Rengifo.
Rendon has played 150 games in 3 years
Two Bags is coming back this year in a BIGLY way!
Cjml
I think he meant Drury to second base.
Angels love singing players to huge contracts to have them play like garbage… Josh Hamilton… Justin Upton…. Albert Pujols… Anthony Rendon…. it’s like players go to Anaheim to have their careers die
Ripper, I wouldn’t say this qualifies as a “big” contract. The guys you just mentioned were paid hundreds of millions.
Hippyripper;
Yes, like that Ohtani guy. What were they thinking?!?!?!?
Calm down… it’s just the angels and noone cares..
Exactly
TrumboJumbo,I think he was just talking about what he likes to sing.
Now that I re-read it and noticed that it gave me a good chuckle! Trout and Ohtani are both known singers.
Angels have had several great, sensible short-term acquisitions pending the team sale. Tyler Anderson was an “A+” deal. Renfroe was an “A” deal, the Drury signing is an “A-“. They should sell the team every year. LOL
He fits in as a depth piece who can get a lot of playing time all over but he can’t really hit. 2022 is an outlier.
Righty platoon partner with Walsh/insurance for Walsh and Rendon
You mean it makes zero sense to you. They now have the ability to trade existing players like Regnifo for other pieces they need. Fletcher becomes a super sub. Drury plays second. They trade for a shortstop and a starter. teams want players ready to play in the bigs. And this guy can platoon at first with Walsh, play third– and Urshela can do the same thing. What if Rendon goes down and Walsh can’t make it back? Urshela plays third and Drury plays first. Fletcher moves to second– that’s called depth.
Carla, this makes sense IF they trade for a true SS, yes.
Dude can play 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and LF..there are plenty of AB’s to go around..
Great to know he doesn’t play SS, which is the only hole the Angels have had for two years now. But another guy who can play 2B/3B with some OF just like Urshela and Rengifo. At least there is finally depth for when players go down (e.g., Fletcher/2B, Rendon/3B, and Walsh/1B).
Haha, man, this is so Angels.
At least it’s only 2 years.
You made the playoffs for the first time in 20-years and you’re talking smack?
Ha, my team doesn’t need to have made the playoffs in order for me to recognize that the Angels are notorious over spenders. Hey, we’ve been there too my man. We have much in common Ever heard of Bill Bavasi.
You are lucky that you didn’t have to live through Buzzie!
A big part of the spending problem was Dipoto. He is not our problem any more. First Ray now Castillo, a sub 500 pitcher. Jerry can’t stop flushing money.
A sub .500 pitcher, that won’t be anymore.
He’s now actually on a good team.
Amazing how that works.
Your team needs to figure out how to get Trout out let alone worry who the Angels signed,
UTL guy that can hit – What’s not to like?
2.6 war in his walk year. 2.0 overall for his career. There is lots not to like.
WAR doesn’t measure heart.
This will win you over sooner than you’d like to admit.
There’s a reason every fan that saw him play for their team wanted him back.
I’m a Jays fan. I guarantee most of us didn’t want him back. He was terrible for us.
WAR doesn’t measure heart.
============================
No one played harder than I did, but that didn’t make me a real player. Before 2022, Drury had a negative career bWAR.
angelsfan4life, Stop it!!! That is not Halo lifer talk!!!
Well, that’s valid. But, his migraine issues, or whatever it was, were supposed to be responsible for many of his struggles. I guess time will tell though. The good thing is that $17M over 2years isn’t bad, especially in this market. IKF is a 3 WAR guy and he just got $6M while in arb years. But, if Drury tanks, they can just use him as a their UTL guy.
Hopefully this sale goes through and the Halos get some aggressive ownership.
If he had migraines then that would definitely affect his performance. As someone who has had to deal with migraines quite a bit in my recent past is very difficult to perform well at anything while suffering through them. You just can’t focus properly.
He still had what is currently the best offensive season of his career, though.
2.6 war is outstanding. if you have that at every position you win.
He won’t replicate that success. 2.3 bWAR came in CIN and he accumulated just 0.3 bWAR in SD. Sure, he played 2x less games in SD but obviously he was still not on that pace. Expect more of his SD tenure performance in LA.
WAR measures nothing of any relevance. His play on the field shows that he has improved and his ability to play multiple positions is very valuable.
Plus, his advanced stats show a very interesting story. Although numbers like his wOBA and xwOBA are higher than he’s ever had (could be because he’s medically sound now) many of his advanced metric percentages are in line with his career averages (K%, BB%, hard hit%, etc).
Also, his BABIP was just below average last season per Fangraphs, at .293, indicating he wasn’t lucky; rather, he was successful.
WAR is extremely relevant but even if you’re only using the eye test, you would recognize his play on the field was a lot different in SD than in CIN. 0.3 bWAR over those 46 games. Multiply that by 3.5 and he would’ve had 1.1 bWAR over 162. I expect that performance more than his insane one in CIN.
Only relevant for people who can’t evaluate on field talent without metrics that can’t be proven. The best players always have the highest WAR for a reason.
So all of a sudden, he got to San Diego and the clock struck midnight?
I mean, these are humans. It’s a small sample size and sometimes it’s not easy for humans to acclimate to a new environment so quickly.
Jaysfan is right about his issues with migraines. Sometimes players improve with experience and/or better health. It’s not complicated.
If he puts up 2.3 WAR each of the next two seasons like he did the last two, that contract will be an incredible steal. You’d expect to pay about $14M/yr for that, they’re paying him $8.5M/yr for which you’d expect a 1-1.5 WAR player.
The Angels are only in trouble if Drury goes back to being who he was as a Blue Jay.
Back to back correct picks!
Kuntry, when you take the contest don’t forget who your friends are (us little people). I’ve seen what $500 unexpected bucks can do to a Man..It can get ugly.
I found a $10 dollar bill in an old pair of jeans back in 2013 and have never been the same since..
What was the name of the girl in the jeans?
Tracy I think..
lol
$500 will give me almost $800 NZ dollars. Come to Auckland and we’ll have a grand old time!
Sounds good man! I’ll bring that $10 bucks I’ve been hanging on to and buy the 1st round!
Cheers!
$800 in NZ, but I’ve heard it gets you 900 dollareedoos in Australia.
Nope, $500 would give you about $750 Aus dollars.
I didn’t say Aus dollars, I said Aus dollareedoos.
So far, I have 13 right if Correa stays with Giants. That puts me in roughly the top 1% of 5500 and ahead of all of the MLBTR staff entries.
Correct: Judge, Correa, Trea Turner, deGrom, Nimmo, Willson Conteras, Rizzo, Kershaw, Montero, Tyler Anderson, Pederson, Robertson and Ottavino.
“If Correa stays with the Giants” LOL!!!!!
Manny, you are the only one I’ve seen who made the call on Correa & the Mets early. Nicely done!
Very proud of ya!
Manny,
Very proud of ya!
You deserve special credit for recognizing half those guys would return to their former teams.
No way he’s turning that down!
Trumbo….you’re getting a baller, enjoy sir.
WOooOoOooOOoOOooooOoooo!!!!!
Another L for the brewers free agency. Kid would have been perfect
Wow
Good get for the Angels and a better deal for Drury. Not too much money or too long for the Halos and a big raise over the <$1M two-way numbers he had been getting. He is young enough that he could still get a bigger FA contract in two years if he improves on '22 hitting. He has lots of versitility across the infield and would be a good fit for a lot of MLB teams. Not the Padres, though, with a four shortstop superstar infield and now Carpenter for DH and occasional 1st base, and Drury wanting a shot at everyday play. It will be interesting to see if he can continue to hit at 2022 levels (or better) with everyday durability at an infield position. Padres still need a mostly bench infield relief that can platoon DH with Carpenter, along with a similar corner OF (and possible DH) and back-of-the-rotation/twice through the line up type of pitcher. Or some kind of blockbuster trade for a top-shelf SP while still covering the hole elsewhere that such a trade would surely uncover.
RoadToRio;
The Padres need to line their field with paper….
Because it looks like they’ll play great on paper.
As a padres fan this feels like a great deal for the angels. I know it’s one good year but I’m a believer he is going to be a solid player.
Really wanted him back on the padres. Though that ship seemed to sail when they landed Carpenter
Nice signing, decent contract $, wish he signed on my team
Damn, was hoping he’d be back to the padres, but oh well
Wondering if Walsh isn’t going to be ready.
At the very least a solid platoon partner for Walsh.
Perry said he wanted depth, depth, depth.
With Rendon’s continuing injury issues and Walsh being hurt, depth is critical. This is a great signing.
Walsh is expected to miss all of April and possibly all of May.
Source for that? Everything I’m seeing says he’s expected to be ready for spring training, including this piece that just moved tonight by the Angels beat writer for MLB.com: mlb.com/news/brandon-drury-angels-deal:
Maybe they’ve updated his status, but they were publicly saying he would not be ready by the end of April and they were hoping for May. The thoracic surgery he had is serious and not all players are the same afterward. I hope he’s fine, but it’s not a guarantee that he goes back to All-star form. I hope he does.
Good get. I mean teams other than the same 6 or so sucking up the oxygen need to get FAs too.
Angels nice pick up
Guy can play all over the field and got some pop in his bat can never have enough depth on the roster
Good signing. I like the player, especially at that price.
Braves whiffed not picking him up…
I wanted him or Wil Myers because of their versatility and clubhouse presence.
TWO thumbs UP!!!
Perry’s just acquiring all the guys he struck out on last offseason. First Tyler Anderson, now Drury
This is awesome. Gives the team even more positional flexibility. Not saying they will be in the hunt for a WC, but this is a much improved team over last season.
Minassian, a closer please?
Yes, that’s kind of the last missing piece.
Canning is throwing and should be ready for spring training. Wondering if he or Chris Rodriguez could fill that role.
Chris Rodriguez would be a good fit. He has a mid to upper 90s FB and good K numbers.
I wonder when Ben Joyce will get called up? Not many people can throw that hard. 105 mph would be hard to hit even if its got little movement. Intriguing choice as closer.
C-Rod is not throwing off a mound yet. please don’t count on this kid. And I’m not sure why we are excited about Canning– he has not performed t date.
He sure likes to slap breaking balls in the zone over the fence. Good get for the Halos
Great signing for the Angels! Drury balled out last season. Angels slowing moving up the AL West standings.
Is there another direction they could go?
This is a terrible signing and massive overpay. One OK year out of the past five years.
Arte should sell that team as quickly as possible. The more fans they continue to disappoint, the less revenue that organization will generate. Once Ohtani is out next year at the trade deadline, Trout is going to be it for them. It’s amazing how well he does with the little protection they’ve provided for him over the years.
It’s $8.5M a season. It’s not bad at all. Dude hit 28 HR last season and can play all over the field. Give him a chance.
Six teams have given him a chance. This guy will only be DFA’d once the haul for Ohtani comes into play.
Angels have paid Rendon a total of over $90 million. He has 20 HRs and less than 100 RBIs for the Angels.
You should be angrier than Howard Beale from Network…
youtu.be/WINDtlPXmmE
Nick – Look at that dude’s moniker. He has to bag on the Angels.
I created this account specifically to comment on this signing.
I’m not an Angel fan. However, I sympathize for the Angel fans that they continue to accept this mediocrity (even that word seems like too much credit for them) continuously over the past 10 or 15 years.
I will agree that Brandon Drury earned that contract. I’m just disappointed FOR Angel fans, that it was the Angels that offered it.
Honestly wish my team would have signed him for that.
People shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss the notion of Shohei staying. If they do well this year, I can see them locking him up on a 12yr 460mil extension. He will draw as much $$$ from the OC crowd as anywhere else he could possibly play. All Arte has to get is the pulse of the prospective buyers and if they are all saying DO IT, then they can push hard for an extension. Shohei won’t agree unless he feels the team is going in the right direction. Something by the AS break is definitely possible in my opinion though. Maybe sooner.
Dude is insanely loyal, clearly enjoys the team and they were the only team who truly encouraged him to do both. Even if he believes the new owner is the real deal, the angels are the favorite to sign him no matter what Jon Heyman or whatever those size 6 men’s shoes say.
Bkbk, Well put as well. Agreed.
He MUST be dealt at the deadline. The haul they receive should be monumental and likely factor in more than one team.
Re-signing him in the off-season may be possible but without any clarity on their path forward, both as a team and an owner, I peg those chances under 20%.
I do not believe Ohtani will sign with whoever offers him the most years or most money.
I don’t think he will go with whoever offers him the most $ necessarily either. 99 didn’t. But yeah you are right about the break being do or die time. Extend or deal him. One or the other.
Give it a rest. He’s a late bloomer. 28HRS is 28. How many had more on the Angels? Did Taylor Ward have 28? No. that’s right– another late bloomer. The money is very reasonable and the term is only two years.. But you’d rather see the parade of triple-A bust outs playing a half a season when there are injuries? It also creates competition.
Mariners destined for a fourth place finish in 2023.
Breh. There lineup is better than last years lineup. The angels have zero pitching and a moron of a manager. 4th place has been reserved by the angels for the foreseeable dwag
Big the Angels starting rotation finished 6th in ERA. The Angels finished 9 overall in team ERA. That is definitely far from having no pitching. Now the Mariners have a better BP.
And they added Anderson. And they traded away some of their top pitchers at the deadline or they would have been better. They’re still adding and I expect them to be stronger.
hacks – Zero pitching? The Angels’ rotation ERA was in the top 10 in 2022. We need one or two BP pieces and a closer but to say they have zero pitching, especially with Ohtani leading the way, is silly.
If you look at when they finally got Detmers right and stopped throwing lorenzen they were top 3 rotation.
In the 2nd half the starters were 4th in ERA and FIP.
The Angels pitching staff was 9th in ERA and 11th in FIP in MLB last season. The starters were 6th best in MLB. We have a Rodriguez returning from injury and a guy that was drafted this year that throws 105 and went straight to AA after being drafted. Closer is a position that I would like to see addressed but if Rodriguez and Joyce end up sharing that role I would be ok with that.
Pitching is not the Angels big issue anymore. Position player depth was. With the additions of Urshela and Drury that is no longer a problem.
Sadly, I’m a Mariners fan. I don’t really want the Angels to get (too much) better. But here we are. I think the Angels are in the midst of a sensible off-season and boast a fine rotation.
I like the Mariners’ prospects, but am of a mind their moves this off-season are, in the short-term, more lateral in nature and somewhat baffling. The Rangers and Angels both at this stage seem to have improved their player personnel fortunes heading into 2023. I bristle at what the Mariners could be expected to sacrifice in return for Bryan Reynolds, a player that in no way excites me. I wonder what they would be asked to overpay for Ohtani in 2024, and should they emerge victorious in a second go-round of an Ohtani sweepstakes I wonder also if it would be worth it.
If I were an Angels fan, I’d be pretty pleased with the way their off-season has gone. The only thing that would bug me is their retention of Nevin.
Man, free agency will be wrapped up by Christmas.
much cheaper than I thought
Heard an interview with Votto where he was discussing how Drury’s training includes using an eye patch while hitting. Was really hoping the pirates would pony up.
And a peg leg… don’t forget the peg leg! He takes it off and hits with it.
Waste of $ on a 1 season wonder. Fits right with LAA’s consistent strategy.
99socal has yet another account.
Nope. I’m someone else leaving somewhere else.
Nope. I’m someone else, nowhere near socal.
Most contracts, going forward, will be overpays…get used to it.
Unfortunately that impacts fans with increased cost of tickets, concessions, etc…
Hugh overpay on a half season production? Just another bad signing by the Angels.
What are you talking about? the guy is a late bloomer. he had 28HRS last year. No one is confusing him with Trout, but he’s above league average and that’s what they need. Solid players who can contribute SOMETHING as opposed to the triple-A guys who can’t contribute. As for the money– bad players are getting this much– two years is very reasonable and I would argue a good value.
Twenty HRs in just over half a season playing in a HR haven. Then not much. He’ll basically be a utility guy. Not a bad player, but usually the back of the baseball card doesn’t lie.
Losers always have a reason why other people succeed. He drove in close to 90 RBI and had more than 30 doubles. Come on now.
He won’t come anywhere close to those numbers…but he should be serviceable.
The AL West may actually have 4 competitive teams next season.
Texas was expected to be 77-85 last season after the fact based on run differential. Adding Odorizzi, Heaney, and deGrom has to add at least 8 wins, but the 3rd place wild card team in the AL had 86 wins last year, and the NL 3rd wild card had 87. I really love the deGrom signing. I wouldn’t change that for the world. However, it seems the Rangers are a few wins short, and they don’t seem willing to follow through. They got offense last year but not pitching. This year, they got pitching but not offense. Given the Pirates’ stubbornness, it seems that the Rangers won’t really get anyone. Conforto is out there, with maybe a few trade candidates, but it doesn’t seem like they are willing to trade the prospects necessary to win. They could have also let Perez go and spent that 20 million towards JD Maritinez and Haniger or guys like that. I like the willingness to spend; it’s just the inefficiency that I don’t like. Btw, I am referring to this Drury deal since he has played in the outfield before.
DeGrom hasn’t stayed on the field for the last two seasons. Why would he be able to now? or for that matter the duration of this mega contract?
Who mentioned deGrom would win 8 more? There are other guys. Look at how bad the rotation was last season. Btw, are you a Mets’ fan? 20 starts of deGrom would help a lot more than 30 of Rodon. I don’t understand the sheer jealousy here. He has had 3 200 inning seasons and can easily just throw softer by a few MPH and not get as injured.
Last year, Degrom had 1.4 WAR. Heaney was 0.7 WAR, and Odorizzi was -0.1 WAR. I would not bank on this group getting 8 wins. It’s good to be optimistic, but it is a big jump to get 8 wins based on their recent track record.,
I swear to God my diamondbacks make me sick! him and turner was so damn affordable!
Ha, that’s awesome.
Hahahahahaha
It’s true. How cheap can one team get? Traded away scherzer Upton Swanson goldy Carlos Gonzalez to name a few. They signed russ ortiz to a big contract. They do stupid things. it’s crazy cause look at the talent they had. you have to build around it. not expect every young player to succeed. or get minor league contracts for guys who have down years and hope they do well. it’s a shame
Don’t forget about Eaton and Inciarte and Pollock. Lol
Haniger as well. It’s the return that gets to me. we get terrible players. Shelby Miller is the top of the worst return
Brother, the list is endless. We could go on and on. But in the end we root for the name on the front the jersey , not the back. Keep the faith, as painful as it mostly is around here. I’m sure we’ll do more this off-season.
At least you aren’t with the White Sox and traded away Fernando Tatis to get James Shields and his 16-35 record for 2.5 years at 5.00+ ERA.
Maybe not. However , watching Max’s success and Paul finally getting an MVP trophy stings like hell. Happy for both , though.
I know 05 was a long time ago but 01 is even longer. Greener grass to come? No pun intended.
Figure it may then take more to bring Gurriel back in a utility role to Stros.
I’ve always found this guy highly overrated but fortunately for the Angel’s, they didn’t exactly overpay. Drury has had only one year of hitting 20+ Homer’s and he doesn’t exactly hit for average or get on base on average. Pretty good deal but not sure it will salvage the Angel’s year on its own.
pwndroia – “Pretty good deal but not sure it will salvage the Angel’s year on its own.”
Drury alone won’t, but Drury, Anderson, Urshela, Renfroe, etc, have been great additions and together make the team much better than 2022.
Prov, imagine what a gift it would be if Canning ever turns around…I remember his 1st career start in 2019 like it was yesterday. Can’t say I remember his last start much unfortunately..
I agree TJ. I had high hopes for Canning but have written him off at this point. It would be a welcomed surprise if he suddenly regained his potential.
Anything they get out of 2b and SS will be an improvement over the last few years.
When are the Tigers going to get some offense, clueless new guy?! Now there’s basically nothing left!!
Drury wasn’t gonna help improve the team OBP. Harris isn’t interested unless they can.
He can’t pitch though.
No, But Ohtani, Anderson, Sandoval and Detmers can. And they will add another top rotation arm. Eovaldi would like nice in that rotation, or even Carrasco
If the sale of team is going out to bid in January, wouldn’t it be prudent of the outgoing owner to stand down on spending? Unless the bidding process is just a formality and a new ownership is already in fold and approving these moves … and authorizing, I believe, a $200 million dollar payroll budget that was announced by Arte?
Why? They’re short term deals. The prudent thing is to field a winner, fill the seats with enthusiastic fans, and get a prospective owner excited about buying a winner. They’ve had two good drafts and have three young power arms that will get called up this year. Everyone wants to be with a winner. Whatever they’re spending they’ll get back selling the team.
carllafong;
The Angels new owner(s) may come in and fire Perry Minasian. But no MLB organization and ML team turns on a dime. He’s gotten the pitching rolling, with more on the way…and pitching and defense is the core of winning teams.
Wrote it before – if the new owner(s) is/are dumb enough to let Mr. Minasian go, another MLB team will bring him in to run their Baseball Ops department within a year or two. What he’s done isn’t going unnoticed….and players will be coming up to the Angels for the next 4 years that he and his staff brought into the farm system.
I think Minnassian is doing a great job and had two outstanding drafts. We really have some great arms in the minors– some will impact the team this year. I think Perry stays and they bring in a big name to be president– maybe Epstein, or someone from the Dodgers, maybe Billy Beane– bit someone of note.
Why not Billy Eppler?
He’ll be unemployed soon. Cohen will have to blame someone, after all.
C Yards, “Unless the bidding process is just a formality and a new ownership is already in fold and approving these moves … and authorizing,”
Yep…
I’m happy for ya, TrumboJ, I’m happy for ya!
Google Patrick Soon-Shiong.
Ok. This provides depth around the diamond.
Rendon and Walsh are both questionable. We can field a complete MLB caliber lineup even without them now.
I think this is a great move! Drury had an awesome season at the dish last year, hopefully he can turn in another one this year. I like him.
Great signing and the type of player they needed to add. Looks like Regnifo gets traded for a needed bullpen arm, or packaged for a shortstop or starting pitcher.
I’d be shocked if anyone gave up a player of significance for Regnifo.
It’s been widely reported that there is a lot interest in him by other teams, but it doesn’t have to be a one for one. They have other assets to package– Jo Adell, and a host of arms that might be of interest to the right team.
I believe you’re right Carl. A trade is coming for one of the things you mentioned for sure.
I was unsure if what Drury did this year was real but I thought he had a chance to have similar numbers. Signing with the halos tells me I was wrong and he is going back to how he played with my jays
Good for Drury, he was….not great for the Jays, but glad to see he turned it around,
I think the Angels have done a great job improving their team thus offseason with additions they have made. Renfroe, Urshela and Drury are nice pieces to add to the puzzle. Estevez was a tremendous get for their bullpen and Tyler Anderson was a nice addition to a rotation that already shows promise. Signing the huge names on the market doesn’t always make your team better overall. I’m not an Angels fan so I don’t pay a lot of attention to know the ins and outs of the organization but this seems like it could be one of the best offseason they’ve had in years to improve their club. Hope it works out for them so they have a shot at keeping Ohtani past next year. If they could get one complete healthy year of Rendon, Trout and Ohtani it would be fun to see what that lineup could do. Those three being healthy would make Renfroe, Urshela and Drury that much better because you would rather pitch to them before you would Trout and Ohtani.
Still gonna finish no better than 3rd in AL West. Pity. Would like to see Trout and Ohtani get some prime time TV exposure in the playoffs.
i was right!!
This signing doesn’t make a lot of sense. The Angels already have Urshela and Rengifo who both play 2B/3B and are depth players (like Drury). Something has got to give, and this might mean a trade, possibly Fletcher or Rengifo?
What the Angels need is a SS.
Drury can play in the outfield as well and like you mentioned with this signing you could see Rengifo being dealt in a package for another area of need. The Angels have done a fantastic job this offseason at putting a better team on the field in 2023.
The Angels are putting a decent offensive team together, too bad their pitching won’t match that lol
jvent;
Appears you don’t watch any Angels games or follow the team lol
Go check out their offensive stats vs pitching stats last year bud
Their team ERA jumped to 6th in the AL and they’ve added Tyler Anderson and Carlos Estevez to that mix. The bad pitching narrative is all but yesterday’s news.
Plenty of teams have turned on a dime with one good offseason. I hate to rehash an overused example but the 2002 Angels are an example of that. The 2004 Angels are also an example after an 85 loss season in 2003. From there, the Angels won 5 division titles in 6 years and were just a few games from it being entirely consecutive in 2006. Fast forward to 2013, Angels lose 84 games, and then jump to an MLB best 98 wins in 2014. For the past 20 years, the Angels have been an example of a team that is most likely to turn on a dime because of Mike Trout, and now because of both Trout and Ohtani. Some of that may be attributed to media noise, but the Angels are a team that has been in a great position to turn it right around in one season. We saw that in the first 7 weeks of 2022, but what was still lacking was exposed, and those exact weaknesses are what every move Misanian has made is addressing this offseason. I have every bit of confidence the Angels will finally turn it around in 2023. And I haven’t been able to say that in a long time. Probably in over 10 years.
Smart move. Alot fans might not know this, but the main reason on why Drury struggled so much earlier in his career(in Toronto anyway)was because he was trying to play through really bad migraines and it was even affecting his vision. He is starting to realize his hitting potential(late bloomer), and the Angels have another good signing
All these players are getting too much money … Small market (and cheap owners) teams are doomed !!
The small market Padres blew that idea out of the water. When the players are getting more than 50% of the revenue MLB makes in a year, then and only then can you say that the players are getting too much money. They aren’t close to that yet.
Well at least I predicted two signings right (Angels get Anderson and Drury)
I had Correra going to SF but now gotta count that as another wrong guess.
Had Judge going to SF, as well.
Thought for sure Braves wouldn’t let Swanson walk and he would be back.
Did have Trea Turner in Philly.
Whiffed on Bogaerts. Had him going to the Dodgers.
Thought Tyler Anderson would be a Cardinal.
Thought Justin Turner would sign with the Brewers.
As you can see, I pretty much flunked my GM aptitude test!
I see a big trade coming. This is how you create trade chips when your farm system is lacking but has just enough to build a package around. Meaning Adell, Soto, and your choice of two young pitchers for such and such.
This represents a sign of a trade to come.
Depth? I get it. But, both, Urshela and now Drury, are everyday infielders. I’m not sold on Fletcher or Rengifo. I’ve heard Rengifo has generated some interest from other teams so I’m thinking he gets packaged with other pieces for either an established everyday catcher, a shortstop, or a bona fide closer.
We’ll see, but that’s my initial thought.
Fletcher played 61 games last season. Walsh 118. Rendon 47. Rengifo 127. Ward 135. You noticing a pattern here?
There are plenty of at bats to go around and if come the trade deadline there are not enough at bats, then put together a trade. It has been a lack of MLB caliber depth that has killed the Angels when injuries hit the last 2-3 seasons.
None of the Angels’ moves have set the world on fire per se, but they’ve had an excellent offseason thus far. The roster looks quite a bit deeper heading into ’23.
Great signing, hope Drury mashes for the Halos!
A very fair deal. Also great they finally have a power bat after all these years of Trout, Ohtani, Pujols, Rendon…. Wait…
I always liked Brandon Drury as a Bluejay even though he didn’t hit that well. He was a good ball player and played pretty good defence anywhere they put him 2 3rd or in the out field. He also distroyed Oakland Athletic Pitching for some reason or other lol.
Puzzling – I felt addition of Urshela raised the infield compete level and really didn’t see a weakness. Rengifo looked like a valuable starter up the middle and Soto was a pleasant surprise over the last month. Fletcher & Soto have to wonder where they fit in. Not so sold on Anderson & thought a veteran starter like Wacha or even Cueto should help buffer Suarez and Sandoval if there’s a predictable regression… At best they’re fighting for 3rd. oh well it’s only money, right?
Puzzling? I give you only 2 words to clear it up for you, “depth” and “trade”.
Seriously, the Marlins couldn’t do this deal?
Might as well have just brought back Brian Anderson. Better player than Drury on both sides of the ball when healthy
Yep. But we know that Kim Ng hasn’t liked Brian Anderson from Day 1. Funny that she let’s him go; Kept Garrett Cooper for 1B; And can’t sign Drury for this little money?
2023 is gonna be a great year!
Marlins need bats. Drury might have helped, but unless the youngsters pan out, gonna be another long season for the Fish. Offense is so weak that Alcantara might lose 20 games and still win another Cy Young Award.
What the actual f### another waste of 17mil the angels have no clue
Am I the only one that sees this signing as just another pawn piece of a complete offseason that Perry is playing!! New SS incoming via trade w/ Padres, Giants, Guardians, or Cubs.
Yes agree.
The Angels are a dumpster fire.
Next to the Rockies, Angels are the worst run franchise. And that might even be a toss up. Artie just loves throwing big bucks at the over-thirty crowd and those moves rarely work out.
Another .500, or near .500, season for the Halos. They are about as plain vanilla as one can get. Two super stars surrounded by meh!
The Orioles almost picked him up with their 2/2 offer. 2 years 2 million bwahaha
Once upon a midnight Drury
Ohtani should have been the M.V.P.
The only reason Judge won is because he is tall.
Wonder if the Angels are shopping Urshela cause Drury sort of makes him redundant
They’re shopping Drury
A free agent signing cannot be traded til June 1st without their permission. Any why sign him in the first place then?
It was a joke
Lol! Angels apparently gave up on fixing their pitching so just gonna try to outscore everyone
That worked pretty well for Philadelphia last year.
Wheeler, Nola and Suarez formed a damn good top three. So it was more than hitting that got us to the WS. Pity that hitting went AWOL over the final three games. I think our regulars went something like 9 for 96 in that span with strikeouts a-go-go.
The Mets are improved, the Braves are still the Braves and the Marlins bring solid SP each night. Gonna be tougher for the Phillies to make the WS this year, however we have improved, as well. Looking for Trea Turner to have a big year.
“Drury played well in a limited look for the Mets the next year, but New York designated him for assignment at year’s end.”
Another player the Mets FO let go for nothing in the last two years who did big things elsewhere. That should tell them something.
Should.
Good for the Angels. They’ve got five MLB caliber infielders now and Fletcher. Hopefully he (Fletcher) starts less than 10 games. A slap hitter who rarely steals and doesn’t walk should be reserved for a late-inning defensive replacement job at best. wRC+ of 69 and 75 for the last two years is stinky poo. Even with a solid glove. He even scored well below average on the base paths last year too. Poo.
I don’t get anything the Angels do. I checked their 40-man, and their IF is:
Velasquez
Rendon
Walsh
Rengifo
Fletcher
Urshela
Drury
So now you have 7 guys devoted to the IF, where you need 4 + a UIF + (maybe) a backup 1B/3B. I like Urshela well enough, but he doesn’t have a starting position. And I don’t see how Drury is an upgrade over Renfigo.
Several of the players you listed have experience playing the OF, too:
Fletcher = 28 games
Walsh = 22 games + 98 games in the minors
Rengifo = 19 games + 26 games in the minors
Velazquez = 16 games + 85 games in the minors
Drury = 127 games.
Perry wanted positional flexibility, so that’s what he’s got here.
Sure, but assuming Moniak is on the team all those guys are #5 OFs.
@JoeBrady “And I don’t see how Drury is an upgrade over Renfigo”
Are you kidding dude? Are you related to Rengifo?
Rengifo put up numbers when the Angels were out of it.
Roger Lodge ran his numbers with RISP and Less than 2 outs.
Rengifo was under .200 for both
Dude can’t it when the games on or when the games matter
Rengifo is much younger. Roger Lodge is only giving you stats for his first real complete season. Rengifo actually improved during the season. High contract rate. I wish he would walk more, but he is aggressive at the plate. Of all the players starting on the Angels, Rengifo and Ward has the most upside of any player due to their ages. Adell has a ton of upside, maybe more, but he swings and misses too much on balls in the strike zone. If Adell could shorten his swing maybe we see a big improvement.
Rengifo put up numbers when the Angels were out of it.
=======================
OPS by month:
.788
.589
.825
.720
.707
He had one bad month. His hitting had nothing to do with the Angels being out of it.
Joe, imo, Velasquez starts the season in SLC leaving the Angels with 6 solid IFs options on the 26-man roster. Last year, we all screamed bloody murder about the lack of IF depth… problem solved.
Velasquez value my way up this season. He will be helped more than any player with the new rule changes. His speed coupled with his defense at 2nd and SS….He had a much higher trade value now if the Angels decide to trade him.
Plus Velazquez is finally giving up on batting lefthanded.
Small sample size, but batting right vs right he went 5-12 with a HR this past season.
He won’t be a world beater batting righty only – his numbers from that side are still weak, but his overall MLB numbers batting righthanded are significantly better than lefthanded.
Perhaps just enough to keep him around as a versatile glove and pinch runner off the bench.
The new rule changes for the upcoming 2023 season equates to a Whitey Herzog wet dream.
Pitching, pitching, pitching!
According to the OC Register, the Angels signed Jake Lamb to a minor League contract. He was good with the Dodgers last season.
This is now the second big tell today that the Angels are about to make a big impactful trade in the upcoming days.
Holy Moley! They have an infield of Rendon, Walsh, Rengifo, Velasquez, Drury, Urshela, and Fletcher.
Here is who I see being traded: Rengifo, Fletcher, Adell, Stassi, Suarez and Stefanic.
Stassi trade is to dump salary either to stay beyond the 2nd tier of the Luxury Tax.
I say we the Angels could end up with some Marlins pitching before the weekend is over. I think both teams could really help each other out. Maybe the Angels pick up Cabrera and Lopez from the Marlins in addition to other players.
The Angels have 4 LHPs in their rotation. They probably want to balance that out.
Maybe they trade with the White Sox and pick up Giolito. Rengifo or Fletcher could be their answer at second base.
I take the Lamb being good back.
This team was obliterated by injuries to position players and at times had a line up that was barely recognizable. Injuries are going to happen and unfortunately the replacements fell well short of the expectation. This and the other moves make perfect sense to me. This team needs a lot of depth because it was sorely lacking last year.
Giants should have been all over this instead of the failed Correa deal. Even the A’s could have afforded this
I really think this will be a sneaky good signing.
Congrats, TrumboJumbo! Drury passed!
At least now they’ll have a solid option for 3rd base when Rendon gets hurt again.
I thought that was what Urshela was for?
He had a power surge in 2022, which is clearly an outlier. He’s had a career negative WAR before this season. Huge overpay to expect the same offensive result. This won’t move the needle for the Angels and get Trout any closer to the post season. Good guy, Bad signing.
Where are the Angels going to play all their 3rd baseman. Walsh go to see some outfield time again?
“There’s not a whole lot locked in around Shohei Ohtani, Mike Trout, Taylor Ward and Renfroe in the everyday lineup.”
Um, did he mean Rendon here? Or omit him?
Anyway, I am cautiously optimistic that this might be shaping up into the best Angel team since 2014, BARRING INJURY. Still need a closer. I’d accept Fletcher at SS, if he plays close to average defense. I believe he will hit again. Walsh needs to bounce back, too. As does Rendon.
Angels lineup could use another LH bat.in the OF.