Angels Rumors

Infield Notes: Zobrist, Davis, Lind, Moreland, Walker, Angels, Flowers, Reynolds, Matsuda

By Jeff Todd | December 8, 2015 at 12:01pm CDT

The Mets are “pretty optimistic” of landing free agent infielder/outfielder Ben Zobrist, Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com tweets. New York expects a decision today or tomorrow, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports (Twitter links). While the team has yet to formally offer a fourth year, says Sherman, it would work out a fourth year if Zobrist indicates he’d like to join the club.

Here are some more updates on the market for infielders:

The Orioles are meeting today with agent Scott Boras regarding free agent first baseman Chris Davis, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports on Twitter. As Kubatko notes, Boras also represents Pedro Alvarez, who could theoretically also represent an option for Baltimore — at least if the team misses on Davis.
Brewers first baseman Adam Lind appears to have a broad potential market, with Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel tweeting that at least 12 clubs have “checked in” on him.
One such team is the Orioles, per Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter), who says that Baltimore has inquired on both Lind and Mitch Moreland of the Rangers. But the O’s don’t appear to “match up” with Milwaukee on Lind, Haudricourt adds via Twitter.
There’s no realistic possibility of an extension between Neil Walker and the Pirates, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports. GM Neal Huntington says that he feels the team has sufficient internal options — and acquisition possibilities — to “back-fill if Walker is dealt.
The Pirates’ talks with the Rangers on Moreland have “cooled” but are still alive, Biertempfel further reports.
Though there’s continuing interest, the Angels don’t appear likely to land Howie Kendrick in free agency, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports. The veteran second baseman is probably going to be too expensive given the team’s other needs, per Fletcher.
The Angels could look to the Diamondbacks’ stockpile of young infielders to fill one of the club’s potential openings, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times suggests. Los Angeles could offer starting pitching in return.
Free agent backstop Tyler Flowers is reportedly deciding between the Yankees, Braves, and Rays, per MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch (Twitter links). He’d potentially serve as Brian McCann’s backup in New York, says Hoch. That could, in theory at least, make fellow backstops Gary Sanchez and Austin Romine available to utilize in a trade. MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reported on the Braves interest this morning via Twitter, saying that the club is considering Flowers in an effort to avoid over-exposing free agent addition A.J. Pierzynski. If Flowers goes to Atlanta, it would immediately raise yet more questions about the future of young receiver Christian Bethancourt.
Free agent slugger Mark Reynolds is drawing interest from the Rockies, Cardinals, Giants, and Pirates, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets.
Among the teams with interest in Japanese third baseman Nobuhiro Matsuda are the White Sox and Padres, Heyman adds on Twitter.

AL West Notes: Wilson, Angels, Kendrick, Rangers, Pearce, Lewis, Catchers, Mariners

By Jeff Todd | December 7, 2015 at 6:19pm CDT

The Angels are telling clubs they’ll listen to offers on lefty C.J. Wilson, Scott Miller of Bleacher Report reports on Twitter. It seems that Los Angeles would be interested in clearing some payroll in a bid to address the multiple areas of need on the position-player side of the equation.

Waiver Claims: Mike Strong, Daniel Fields, Danny Reynolds

By Steve Adams | December 7, 2015 at 4:43pm CDT

With teams continuing to prune their 40-man rosters, possibly in anticipation of trades or free agent signings, there is plenty of waiver activity happening at the Winter Meetings. Here are today’s claims:

Former Brewers lefty Mike Strong is now a member of the Marlins after he was snatched off waivers, Miami announced. The 27-year-old has not yet reached the majors, and struggled last year after a late-season promotion to Triple-A, but put up strong results at the Double-A level to earn that bump. Strong rated 29th among Brewers prospects heading into the season, per Baseball America, which called him a middle relief prospect who could reach the majors in short order.
The Dodgers made a second claim, taking outfielder Daniel Fields from Milwaukee. Fields, 24, cracked the majors last year for one game with the Tigers after posting a .228/.335/.367 slash in 526 plate appearances at Triple-A. He was claimed earlier in the offseason by the Brewers after ranking among Detroit’s thirty best pre-MLB players for six straight winters.

Earlier Updates

The Dodgers announced today that they’ve claimed right-hander Danny Reynolds off waivers from the Angels (Twitter link). The 24-year-old Reynolds is a former sixth-round pick of the Angels (2009) that reached Triple-A in 2009 but spent the 2014 campaign back in Double-A, where he posted a 4.57 ERA with 10.4 K/9 vs. 5.8 BB/9 in 43 1/3 innings of relief. Reynolds’ strikeout rate has trended significantly upwards since he was moved from the rotation into the bullpen. The control issues he battled in 2015 were the first notable problems he’s had with walks as a professional, so the Dodgers will hope that they’re able to correct the situation in 2015 and get him back on track.

Mariners Acquire Miley, Aro In Exchange For Smith, Elias

By Steve Adams | December 7, 2015 at 3:00pm CDT

An exceptionally busy offseason for Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto continued on Monday, as the Mariners acquired left-hander Wade Miley and right-handed reliever Jonathan Aro from the Red Sox in exchange for lefty Roenis Elias and right-handed reliever Carson Smith. Both teams have formally announced the trade.

Miley, 29, has a long history with Dipoto, who not only was a consultant with the Red Sox after electing to leave his job with the Angels this summer but also served as the Diamondbacks’ scouting director when Miley was drafted back in 2008. Miley is controlled for at least two more seasons for a total of $15.25MM, and his contract also contains a $12MM club option for the 2018 season. He’ll give the Mariners a reasonably priced arm to slot into the rotation behind Felix Hernandez alongside Taijuan Walker and James Paxton.

Miley’s first season with Boston got off to a slow start, but the lefty rebounded from a ghastly 8.62 April ERA to 4.10 ERA with a 137-to-58 K/BB ratio across his final 178 innings of the 2015 season. Miley has been a healthy and consistent innings eater dating back to his sophomore season in 2012, averaging 198 innings of 3.92 ERA ball per year despite spending three years with the hitter-friendly Chase Field as his home park and a fourth season in the American League East. One can imagine that the move to the spacious Safeco Field will benefit Miley considerably.

Aro, 25, posted outstanding numbers between Double-A and Triple-A in 2015 and ultimately made his big league debut. He logged a 3.04 ERA with 8.8 K/9 against 2.2 BB/9 in 74 minor league innings. He yielded eight runs in 10 1/3 Major League innings and averaged 92.5 mph on his fastball while posting an eight-to-four K/BB ratio. MLB.com ranked Aro 26th among Boston farmhands, noting that his fastball features some sink and can touch 95 mph. He has a slider and changeup as well, with the former grading as at least average. Their scouting report feels he can pitch successfully in multiple-inning relief stints and calls Aro “durable.”

Seattle’s decision to part with Smith comes as somewhat of a surprise. The 26-year-old delivered 70 brilliant innings of relief, pitching to a 2.31 ERA with 11.8 K/9, 2.8 BB/9 and an exceptional 64.8 percent ground-ball rate. Smith ranked sixth among qualified relievers in ground-ball rate and struck out a greater number of batters than nearly any pitcher on the top 30 in that regard. He’s controllable for another five seasons and will give president of baseball operation Dave Dombrowski and the Red Sox another elite relief arm to pair with the likes of Craig Kimbrel and Koji Uehara in the late innings.

The Red Sox will also pick up a left-hander with significant big league experience in the form of Elias. The 27-year-old has spent the past two seasons mostly at the big league level, logging a 3.97 ERA with 7.7 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and a 44.9 percent ground-ball rate. Elias has yielded an unspectacular .255/.333/.411 batting line to right-handed hitters but dominated lefties, holding same-handed batters to a .218/.304/.332 clip. His control against lefties could stand to improve a bit, but he’s a generally useful weapon against them and could conceivably be tougher if shifted to a bullpen role, where he could throw harder in shorter stints.

A bullpen slot could be his best shot at cracking the roster next spring, as an immediate spot in the Boston rotation doesn’t seem too likely. The Red Sox currently have David Price, Clay Buchholz, Eduardo Rodriguez, Rick Porcello and Joe Kelly, to say nothing of highly regarded left-handers Henry Owens and Brian Johnson more or less ready for big league action.

Of course, Elias could simply be rotation depth for the Red Sox in the event that they trade another arm or two, or he could be flipped to another club himself. Earlier this offseason, the Marlins were said to have some interest in him when discussing potential Marcell Ozuna deals (though they were looking for considerably more than Elias alone in exchange for Ozuna). Elias is controllable through the 2020 season and won’t be arbitration eligible until at least the 2017-18 offseason.

Ken Rosenthal of FOX reported earlier this afternoon that the two sides were making progress on a deal that would send Miley to Seattle. Ken Davidoff of the New York Post reported the trade was in place (Twitter link). Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweeted that Aro, Elias and Smith were involved.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Bullpen Notes: Chapman, Gott, Albers, Blevins

By Mark Polishuk | December 7, 2015 at 3:29am CDT

It’s been a huge day for reliever signings, as Joakim Soria, Ryan Madson, Mark Lowe and (probably) Darren O’Day all reaching agreements on new contracts. If that wasn’t enough, the Dodgers and Reds are also discussing an Aroldis Chapman trade, so the biggest bullpen trade chip of them all could also soon be off the table. Here’s some news on the relievers who have left the market, some who remain, and yet others who could be on the trading block…

The Nationals continue to have interest in trading for Chapman but are wary about the prospect cost, MLB.com’s Bill Ladson writes. There’s also the difficulty involved in trading current closer Jonathan Papelbon, and Papelbon’s grievance against the Nats is just the latest in several obstacles that will make it hard for Washington to find a taker for the controversial righty.
The Angels are getting interest in right-hander Trevor Gott, FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter link). The Halos want a player of similar value in return. Gott made his MLB debut in 2015 and posted a 3.02 ERA, 5.1 K/9 and 1.69 K/BB rate over 47 2/3 innings. Owner of a 96.2mph fastball, Gott posted much higher strikeout totals over his three minor league seasons and is controlled through the 2021 season.
Righty Matt Albers has received interest from multiple teams, Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith reports (Twitter link). Albers missed most of 2014 due to shoulder problems and signed a minor league deal with the White Sox last winter, only to miss quite a bit of time after fracturing his pinkie during a bench-clearing brawl with the Royals in April. Still, Albers ended up posting a very impressive 1.21 ERA, 6.8 K/9 and 3.11 K/BB rate over 37 1/3 innings with Chicago last year.
Yakult Swallows right-hander Tony Barnette didn’t reach a deal with any of the five teams who met his $500K posting fee, according to a story from the Sanspo news outlet (hat tip to NPBTracker’s Patrick Newman for his translating tweets). Barnette is set to return to Yakult, though there’s a chance the Japanese team could allow him to pursue a deal with a Major League team anyway.
The Mets will meet with lefty Jerry Blevins’ agent during the Winter Meetings, ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin reports. Assistant GM John Ricco confirmed the club’s interest in re-signing Blevins and expects it will take a Major League contract to get the veteran southpaw back in the fold. Blevins pitched only five innings for the Mets in 2015 as a result of two forearm fractures — one from a line drive, and another suffered while slipping off a curb.
In another piece from Rubin, he hears from Ricco that the Mets weren’t in on O’Day or Madson due to their high price tags. “We didn’t see ourselves playing in that top end where O’Day was,” Ricco said. “But I think that next tier, we’re going to be keeping an eye on….We’re going to meet with a lot of the representatives for the relievers here over the next couple of days.”
Part of the reason the Athletics agreed to a deal with Madson was because they can’t afford to land any of the top free agent hitters and thus have to “spend money where they can,” according to Rosenthal on Twitter. The A’s are also still looking at more starting pitching as well, as evidenced by earlier reports of their interest in Scott Kazmir.
Before signing Lowe, the Tigers made one more try for Soria but talks went nowhere, MLB.com’s Jason Beck tweets. The Pirates, another of Soria’s former teams, didn’t have any interest in re-signing him since the club prefers to build low-cost bullpens, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tweets. The Blue Jays looked into Soria in the name of “checking options,” a source tells Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith, but Toronto wasn’t seriously interested.

Saltalamacchia Had Interest From “6-7 Clubs”

By Zachary Links | December 6, 2015 at 7:44pm CDT

Earlier tonight, the Tigers announced the signing of catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia to a one-year deal for the MLB minimum. Before he put pen to paper with Detroit, however, Salty’s camp was in talks with “six or seven clubs,” according to a baseball source who spoke with MLBTR. The backstop drew varying levels of interest from the White Sox, Royals, Rays, Orioles (prior to Matt Wieters accepting his QO), Phillies, Angels, and the incumbent D’Backs.

The Tigers have landed themselves a veteran who can be a reliable presence behind starter James McCann. Saltalamacchia also could get some opportunities as DH and first base as he moves back to the American League. The former first round pick looked strong in his 70 game run for the D’Backs in 2015 and he’ll attempt to build off of that with Detroit in the New Year.

Angels Could Pursue Yoenis Cespedes

By charliewilmoth | December 6, 2015 at 9:57am CDT

The Angels might make a run at free agent Yoenis Cespedes, Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News tweets. Cespedes would, of course, provide an outfield solution for the Angels, who have been trying to find a third outfielder to start alongside Mike Trout and Kole Calhoun.

A left-handed hitter might be a better fit, given the Angels’ heavily right-handed lineup. Obviously, though, Cespedes’ bat would have an impact for any team, regardless of handedness. He hit .291/.328/.542 last season and was one of the keys to the Mets’ unexpected run to the playoffs, hitting 17 home runs in 249 regular season plate appearances for New York after a midseason trade. While his average seems fairly likely to drop next season, his power has been undeniable in four seasons in the Majors. He’s also very helpful in the field, where his arm is a tremendous asset.

As Joel Sherman of the New York Post notes, Cespedes did not hit well in the playoffs, and there are questions about his motivation and coachability. Still, the 30-year-old appears likely to fetch a nine-figure contract. Last month, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes predicted Cespedes would sign with the Angels for $140MM.

Angels In Talks With David Freese

By Steve Adams | December 4, 2015 at 10:43am CDT

The Angels and third baseman David Freese are said to be “making progress” in talks on a new contract, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register adds (via Twitter) that GM Billy Eppler acknowledged yesterday that the two sides have continued to talk but wouldn’t specify how close the two sides were to an agreement.

Freese, 32, has spent the past two seasons as the Halos’ everyday third baseman after coming over from the Cardinals alongside right-hander Fernando Salas in a trade that sent Randal Grichuk and Peter Bourjos to St. Louis. Eppler and his staff decided against extending a one-year, $15.8MM qualifying offer to Freese, though the team reportedly considered tendering the QO due to Freese’s solid production and what looks to be a barren market at third base.

Freese would fill a notable void with a familiar face for those in the clubhouse. Over the past two seasons, he’s been a steadily productive player at the hot corner in Anaheim, batting a combined .258/.322/.401 with 24 homers in 981 plate appearances. Those numbers don’t jump off the page (or screen, in this instance), but when paired with respectable defense at third base (in the estimation of Ultimate Zone Rating, anyhow), that’s made Freese about a two-win player per year.

Outside of Freese, the free-agent market at third base contains Korean slugger Jae-gyun Hwang, who is currently posted for MLB clubs (bids are due at 5pm ET today) and possibly Daniel Murphy. However, Hwang is obviously an unproven commodity in the Major Leagues, and Murphy has considerably more experience at second base than at third base (even though some scouts feel he’s better suited to play third than second). Trades are another avenue for teams like the Angels that have glaring holes at third base, though one target in whom the Halos were said to have interest, Trevor Plouffe, may not on the market after all, per Twins GM Terry Ryan.

Padres, Angels, Dodgers Showing Most Interest In Utley

By Steve Adams | December 4, 2015 at 8:09am CDT

The Padres, Angels and Dodgers are showing the most interest in second baseman Chase Utley, reports ESPN’s Jayson Stark. Utley has told friends that his preference is to play in his native California, Stark hears, adding that the Los Angeles area native now resides in northern California but still has family in the southern portion of the state.

Some believe that the Padres’ interest could be a precursor to a trade of some kind, Stark writes, as the team has internal second base options in the form of Jedd Gyorko and Jose Pirela. (Additionally, I’d list Cory Spangenberg, Yangervis Solarte and recently acquired Carlos Asuaje in that mix.) Given the depth of options the Padres have at second, the Utley connection is perhaps a bit surprising, but Stark nonetheless characterizes the team’s interest as “strong.”

The Angels, he notes, could look to use Utley both at second base and designated hitter next season depending on matchups. Johnny Giavotella manned second for most of the 2015 season in Anaheim while batting .272/.318/.375 and delivering suspect defense. Of course, Utley himself is coming off a mere .212/.286/.343 batting line between the Phillies and Dodgers. And, at 37 (later this month), it might not be wise to count on plus defense from the veteran, though metrics like Ultimate Zone Rating and Defensive Runs Saved pegged him as only slightly below average and much preferred his work to that of the younger Giavotella.

Stark writes that the Dodgers could use Utley as a short-term stopgap to prospect Jose Peraza — a former Top 100 prospect with the Braves that debuted with the Dodgers in 2015 but received just 25 plate appearances in the Majors. Peraza has considerable speed, but his combined .293/.316/.378 line between the Triple-A affiliates for L.A. and Atlanta wasn’t as impressive as his work at the lower levels in the minors. Then again, he’s also still just 21 years of age, making him significantly younger than the bulk of his competition in Triple-A.

Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the Dodgers have more interest in Utley than they do in Ben Zobrist, which would seem to mesh with the notion that a short-term bridge to Peraza is the preferred route for the team. An outside addition isn’t necessarily needed at all, thanks to the presence of Enrique Hernandez, although adding Utley in a stopgap capacity would allow the Dodgers to continue leveraging Hernandez’s versatility in somewhat of a super-utility capacity.

Angels Notes: Luxury Tax, Skaggs, Wilson, Calhoun, Heyward

By Steve Adams | December 3, 2015 at 10:46pm CDT

With the Angels sitting only $22MM underneath the $189MM luxury tax threshold and holes to fill at second base, third base and in left field, owner Arte Moreno may have no choice but to incur luxury tax penalties for just the second time since purchasing the team in 2003, writes Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times. When asked about the possibility, general manager Billy Eppler sounded open to the concept. “There are scenarios where you can see it being reasonable, and there are scenarios where you can see it not being worth it,” Eppler told DiGiovanna and other reporters. “Undetermined is probably the best way to put it,” added Eppler, who said scenarios which put the team over the luxury tax will be handled on a case-by-case basis. Eppler did admit that he’s had a wide number of trade and free-agent discussions in his search for an outfield upgrade, including names at the top of the market. While he declined to discuss specifics, players such as Jason Heyward, Alex Gordon, Justin Upton and Yoenis Cespedes are all available in free agency, and the former two would give Anaheim a much-needed left-handed bat to help balance out the lineup.

A few more notes on the Halos…

Tyler Skaggs recently threw a 90-pitch bullpen session in Arizona, Eppler also told DiGiovanna today. The GM said the plan for Skaggs, who missed the entire 2015 season recovering from Tommy John surgery that he underwent in late 2014, is to “let him roll” in Spring Training, indicating that he won’t have much in the way of limitations placed on him. Eppler added that C.J. Wilson is expected to be “unrestricted” in Spring Training as well. The 35-year-old Wilson underwent surgery to remove bone spurs from his pitching elbow in August. DiGiovanna points out that Wilson could become a trade candidate in Spring Training if he can demonstrate his health on the mound.
If the Halos do make a run at Heyward, fellow Gold Glove right fielder Kole Calhoun won’t complain one bit about moving across the diamond to left field, he told MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez. “If our team is going to get better, and that’s the way we’re going to get better, I’m all for it,” Calhoun said to Gonzalez when asked about a possible shift to left. Calhoun did go on to discuss the difficulties of such a switch, elaborating on the difficulty of essentially being forced to read swing paths and calculate routes in reverse. Gonzalez speculates that Heyward is the best fit among the potential free-agent outfielders for Anaheim, though he noted he’ll also be the most expensive of the bunch.
It should also be noted that both DiGiovanna and Gonzalez note that Eppler expressed satisfaction with the Angels’ rotation and bullpen, so if further additions are made to the club, expect it to be on the position-player side of the equation. As Gonzalez writes, Eppler and the Angels will head into the Winter Meetings without a set target in mind. Rather, they’ll entertain a wide variety of scenarios to address multiple holes, but Eppler would only state that the goal “is to walk out the door with more information than you walked in with.”
Though he notes that any club in baseball could use a star-caliber outfielder set to enter his age-26 season, MLB.com’s Mike Petriello lays out a case for his belief that the Angels need Heyward more than any other club in the Majors. The Halos’ left fielders were collectively the least-productive unit at the position in 2015, and they have at least three pitchers in their rotation — Jered Weaver, Andrew Heaney and Hector Santiago — who were among the top 25 in fly-ball percentage for starting pitchers, making Heyward’s glove all the more valuable to them. (Matt Shoemaker, too, was in the top 25 he notes, though Shoemaker isn’t necessarily guaranteed a rotation spot.) Also, with a poor farm system that was thinned out further with the acquisition of Andrelton Simmons, the Angels probably can’t add an elite talent by way of trade. It’s a well-reasoned case and well worth a full read.

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