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AL Notes: Iannetta, Gardner, Heyward, Orioles, Parra

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The Mariners signed Chris Iannetta to be the team’s primary backstop, GM Jerry Dipoto told reporters, including Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune (story link). Dipoto said that he sees Iannetta as a likely candidate to return to his prior levels of offensive performance. Meanwhile, the new GM explained that incumbent catcher Mike Zunino will have opportunities to earn time in a part-time role. “Mike comes in with an opportunity to win playing time,” Dipoto said. “A primary catcher is different from what I would consider an everyday player. There is no catcher who is going to go out and catch 162 games. Whether it be a time-share or a backup catcher, Mike is going to be in position to win some of that playing time. He’s still a young guy, and we need to get him back on track.”

Here’s more from the American League:

  • The Angels and Yankees make for a good match on outfielder Brett Gardner, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times opines (Twitter links). Though Los Angeles would rather add a slugger in left, the team also needs an OBP threat at the top of the lineup and has the asset (starting pitching) that the Yanks are after. It probably doesn’t hurt that new Halos GM Billy Eppler just came over from New York. Of course, it remains to be see what kind of pitching asset New York GM Brian Cashman hopes to find, and what kind of value Eppler places on Gardner.
  • Meanwhile, the Angels could still dabble at the top of the free agent market, says Jon Morosi of FOX Sports, who writes that the Halos “aren’t ruling out a pursuit” of Jason Heyward. That match makes sense on paper, of course, given the need and the club’s large budget. Of course, as MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez explained to me on last week’s MLBTR Podcast, the club’s ability to land a player of that magnitude will depend on the payroll levels approved by owner Arte Moreno.
  • With so many needs, the Orioles are giving serious consideration to utilizing Trey Mancini at first base next year (assuming that Chris Davis departs in free agency), ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick writes (links to Twitter). The 23-year-old had a huge year at the High-A and Double-A levels last year. Though he feasted on opposing southpaws, he was quite good against right-handed pitching as well. Of course, leaping into the majors could be a big ask. But as Crasnick notes, there are limits to the teams other options. It lacks top-level system depth to trade from and is understandably uninterested in swapping young, MLB-level players such as Kevin Gausman and Jonathan Schoop, he says.
  • The Orioles have interest in a new deal with free agent outfielder Gerardo Parra, Crasnick also tweets. But Baltimore isn’t looking to go past two years with Parra, who was a trade deadline acquisition. From my perspective, that stance makes a reunion unlikely.

Minor MLB Transactions: 11/23/15

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Here are the day’s minor signings from around the league…

  • Infielder Steve Tolleson is headed to the Orioles on a minor league deal, Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports on Twitter. Tolleson will receive an invitation to major league camp. The 32-year-old owns a .245/.299/.372 slash in 363 career plate appearances in the bigs.
  • Shortstop Hak-Ju Lee is joining the Giants on a minor league deal, Matt Eddy reported as part of a slew of signings. (See his Twitter feed for these and more.) Formerly a top prospect with the Rays, the 25-year-old suffered a serious knee injury and has not hit much since at the Triple-A level. Among other deals, San Francisco also brought back lefty Ricky Romero, per Eddy.
  • The Diamondbacks have added righty Kyle Drabek on a minors deal, according to Eddy. He joins outfielder Kyle Jensen and third baseman Carlos Rivero as Arizona minor league free agent signees. Once one of the game’s best-regarded pitching prospects with the Blue Jays, the 27-year-old Drabek did not live up to his promise in Toronto. But he did toss a solid 137 1/3 innings last year at Triple-A for the White Sox, working to a 3.47 ERA with 5.5 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9.
  • The White Sox have signed righty Phillippe Aumont to a minor league pact, Josh Norris of Baseball America tweets. The former Phillies prospect lost his 40-man roster spot last year. He did put up a 3.14 ERA after moving back into the rotation at Triple-A, but continued to demonstrate serious control problems with 6.8 BB/9.

Earlier Transactions

  • The Blue Jays have signed first baseman Casey Kotchman, second baseman David Adams and shortstop Jiovanni Mier to minor league contract with invitations to Major League Spring Training, writes Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. The 32-year-old Kotchman comes with far and away the most big league experience, having served as an everyday first baseman (or close to it) with the Angels, Braves, Red Sox, Mariners, Rays and Indians from 2007-12. However, Kotchman hasn’t appeared in the Majors since 2013 and hasn’t experienced much in the way of success since his career year with the 2011 Rays. He’s a lifetime .260/.326/.385 hitter in the Majors. Adams, meanwhile, was once a promising second base prospect with the Yankees but never received a consistent chance in the Majors (in part, due to injuries). The now-28-year-old did receive 152 PAs in New York in 2013 but batted just .193/.252/.286 in that short stint. Mier, meanwhile, is a former first-round pick and top 100 prospect, but his bat has never really come around. He’s now 25 years of age and is a career .239/.333/.340 hitter in the minors.

Added To The 40-Man Roster: Friday

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Tonight at 8:00pm ET is the deadline for teams to add players to their 40-man roster and thereby protect them from this year’s Rule 5 Draft. In other words: there will be a significant amount of 40-man roster moves made over the course of the next 13 or so hours. Six clubs already made moves to protect prospects from the Rule 5 yesterday, and each of the remaining 24 clubs should make moves today as well.

In brief: players drafted/signed at 18 years of age or younger must be added to the 40-man roster within five years of signing or be exposed to the Rule 5 Draft. Players drafted/signed at 19 or older must be added within four years. Those interested in all of the specifics can refer to articles from MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo and J.J. Cooper of Baseball America. Perhaps of greater interest is that Mayo lists all of the prospects from MLB.com’s Top 100 list and from their organizational Top 30 lists that much be protected in advance of tonight’s deadline, while Cooper provides brief write-ups on each player that has been protected (and will continue to do so as additions are made).

Here are today’s additions to the 40-man roster. You can check out Baseball America’s coverage to learn more about the individual players listed below …

Earlier Updates

Minor MLB Transactions: 11/19/2015

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Time to catch up on some of the minor moves that have hit the books over the last several days …

  • The White Sox have signed outfielder Scott Hairston to a minor league deal, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports on Twitter. Hairston, 35, sat out the 2015 season but figures to have a chance at cracking a Chicago roster that appears to be in need of several position players. The eleven-year MLB veteran owns a lifetime .242/.296/.442 slash with 106 home runs, with most of that damage coming against left-handed pitching.
  • Righty Jim Miller signed a minor league pact with the Brewers, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy reports. He won’t receive an invite to major league camp, per McCalvy, but chose Milwaukee over three other interested teams because of his relationship with assistant GM Matt Arnold (who just came over from the Rays). The 33-year-old has never played in the big leagues with Tampa Bay, but put up good numbers at Triple-A for the organization last year. Miller has thrown 67 1/3 MLB innings over parts of five seasons, most of them coming in a productive 2012 with the Athletics.
  • Infielder Hernan Perez has also signed on to return to the Brewers, per the MLB.com transactions page. The 24-year-old got an extended look with Milwaukee last year, slashing .270/.281/.365 over 238 plate appearances, but lost his roster spot and elected free agency earlier this fall.
  • The Angels have inked lefty Lucas Luetge to a minor league deal with a spring invite, MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez reports on Twitter. Luetge, 28, provides a potential southpaw pen piece for the Halos. He’s spent parts of each of the last four seasons in the majors, but his innings have dropped in every year. All told, Luetge owns a 4.35 ERA with 7.5 K/9 against 4.8 BB/9 in the bigs.
  • There are five new non-roster invitees heading to Phillies camp, per a club announcement. Infielders Emmanuel Burriss and Ryan Jackson have both joined Philadelphia, as have righties Frank Herrmann, Chris Leroux, and Reinier Roibal. The infielders both come with MLB experience and could represent utility options for the rebuilding club. As for the pitchers, Herrmann and Leroux are both looking for a return to the bigs after having previously spent time in major league pens. And Roibal is a 26-year-old Cuban who put up good numbers — 1.64 ERA, 8.7 K/9 vs. 1.8 BB/9 — at the High-A and Double-A levels last year in the Phillies organization.

Latest On Angels’ Front Office

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4:36pm: Eppler tells Fletcher that the Angels “have not hired Bud Black” and are still in the process of assembling their front office unit (links to Twitter). However, Fletcher notes that it won’t be a surprise if Black ultimately does land in the Angels’ front office, calling him a natural fit.

Notably, Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times has tweeted that Black will join the front office even after Eppler’s comment, so perhaps in light of the drama with the Nationals, the Angels are just being careful to limit talk of Black’s return until everything is official.

4:09pm: Former Padres skipper and Angels pitching coach Bud Black will return to the Halos as a member of their front office, reports MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez. Black’s specific role isn’t clear just yet, though Gonzalez says he’ll likely be a special assistant to GM Billy Eppler. Additionally, Jeff Fletcher of the O.C. Register reports that the Angels have hired Yankees manager of pro scouting as their new assistant general manager.

Black, 58, was fired by the Padres in June of this past season after serving as the team’s skipper for parts of the past nine seasons. He drew offseason interest from both the Nationals and Dodgers in the clubs’ respective managerial searches and was even reported at one point to be the Nats’ choice as their new manager. However, contract discussions between the two sides broke down, and Washington ultimately tabbed Dusty Baker as its new manager. Following that, Black was reported to be one of a handful of finalists for the Dodgers, but the field has since been narrowed to two (Gabe Kapler and Black’s former bench coach Dave Roberts).

Black began his coaching career with the Angels, serving as Mike Scioscia’s pitching coach from 2000-06 before being named Padres’ manager. While his exact duties aren’t yet known, one can envision him working with the club’s young pitchers in Spring Training and going on advance scouting assignments to weigh in on pitchers over the course of the regular season.

Martone, of course, has a connection to Eppler from the pair’s time together in the front office, where Eppler recently held the title of assistant GM. He’ll absorb many of the duties that were shared by Angels assistant GMs Matt Klentak and Scott Servais, who recently left the Halos’ front office to become GM of the Phillies and manager of the Mariners, respectively. Fletcher notes that Martone has been with the Yankees dating back to 2007 and was largely responsible for identifying trade and free-agent targets in New York.

Gonzalez also reports that Ron Roenicke, who served as the Angels’ third base coach from 2000-05 but has more recently been manager of the Brewers and third base coach for the Dodgers, will also return to the Angels. He’ll assume his former duties as the third base coach in Anaheim after missing out on the Dodgers’ managerial gig himself.

Angels Sign Cliff Pennington To Two-Year Deal

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The Angels announced today that they’ve signed infielder Cliff Pennington to a two-year contract. Pennington, a client of Sosnick, Cobbe and Karon, will receive $1.5MM in 2016 and $2.25MM in 2017 for a $3.75MM guarantee, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick reports (via Twitter). Pennington can also earn up to $750K per season based on plate appearances, according to MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez (Twitter link).

Cliff Pennington

Pennington, 31, split the 2015 season between the D-Backs and Blue Jays, batting a combined .210/.298/.281 in what was the worst offensive season of his eight-year Major League career. However, Pennington entered the 2015 season with a lifetime .248/.315/.350 batting line, giving hope that he can rebound to an extent at the plate while continuing to delivery sound defensive value by way of run prevention and positional versatility.

Pennington can competently play second base, shortstop and third base, grading out as an average or better defender at each infield position according to Ultimate Zone Rating and Defensive Runs Saved. He’s a switch-hitter that has typically fared better from the larger (left-handed) side of the platoon, and while his speed hasn’t been as apparent in recent years, he averaged 19 steals per season in 2010-12 and has generally been a positive all-around contributor on the basepaths.

Pennington can provide the Angels with a backup plan to newly acquired Andrelton Simmons, as the team’s only backup option at shortstop had been Taylor Featherston, who is probably ticketed for Triple-A to open the 2016 campaign after surviving 2015 as a little-used Rule 5 utility option. The Angels currently have uncertainty at both second base and third base, so bringing Pennington into the fold gives them a bit of depth on the Major League roster, though they’ll almost certainly look to upgrade at one of the two spots. Johnny Giavotella handled second base duties in 2015 but is a poor defender with limited offensive upside, and the Angels may not want to count on Kyle Kubitza or Kaleb Cowart to immediately step into the picture at third base given their lack of experience.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Reactions To And Effects Of The Andrelton Simmons Trade

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Here are a few notes on the Braves’ trade of Andrelton Simmons and Jose Briceno to the Angels for Erick Aybar, Sean Newcomb and Chris Ellis.

  • Simmons’ departure is a tough pill for Braves fans, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution writes. Simmons was a regular and was signed for several more seasons, and there was a good possibility he would make a brilliant defensive play in any given game. Simmons is the best defensive shortstop since Ozzie Smith, O’Brien says, and there’s a parallel between the Simmons deal and the Padres’ regrettable decision to trade Smith in December 1981 after four years in San Diego as a light-hitting infielder. O’Brien also notes that the Simmons deal is likely to make the Braves less competitive as they open their new ballpark in 2017.
  • The Braves’ rebuild will likely be painful in the short term, but is more likely to reap rewards in the long term than a more cautious approach, ESPN’s Buster Olney writes (Insider only). The Braves’ series of trades leaves them not only with a big collection of prospects, but also with the third overall draft choice next year and likely another top pick in 2017. The Braves are now at a low point in their rebuilding efforts (although perhaps not the lowest point, as Olney notes). The Cubs’ and Astros’ 2015 seasons, though, demonstrate the potential rewards of completing the task ahead.
  • Braves GM John Coppolella says the team made the deal reluctantly, writes MLB.com’s Mark Bowman. “We didn’t want to trade Andrelton Simmons,” Coppolella says. “But we felt this was too good for us to pass up. We felt like we were getting so much talent back in this deal, that if we didn’t make this trade, it would be very tough for us to keep going forward with our plans.” Interestingly, Bowman implies that the Yankees pursued Simmons last offseason and offered a package that included top prospect Luis Severino.
  • The Braves’ return for Simmons was merely a decent one, ESPN’s Keith Law writes (also for subscribers). The Angels did give up their top two prospects in Newcomb and Ellis, but they got a player in return who’s so good defensively that he’s valuable even if he doesn’t hit much. Simmons can also help the Angels win now, which is good, because their remaining farm system isn’t much to speak of.
  • With the departures of Simmons and Jason Heyward, the Braves seem to be betting against their elite defenders aging well, FanGraphs’ Dave Cameron writes. Cameron finds, however, that great young defenders do tend to lose some defensive value from ages 26 to 30 (the age through which the Braves would have controlled Simmons), but that they compensate for that with stronger offensive performances (much as Smith did after moving from San Diego to St. Louis).

Offseason Outlook: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

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The Angels remained in Wild Card contention until the final day of the season but ultimately fell short to the Astros for that spot. With a playoff miss in the books, the 2015 campaign may now be remembered more for the disintegration of the front office than the on-field product. A new regime will look to return the Halos to postseason baseball next year.

Guaranteed Contracts

Arbitration Eligible Players (service time in parentheses; projections via MLBTR)

Contract Options

  • David Murphy, OF: $7MM club option with a $500K buyout — Declined
  • David DeJesus, OF: $5MM club option with a $1MM buyout — Declined

Free Agents

Other Financial Commitments

The series of events that will perhaps have the largest impact on the Angels’ offseason began over the summer, when then-GM Jerry Dipoto abruptly resigned over differences with manager Mike Scioscia and his coaching staff. Reports at the time indicated that Dipoto was frustrated by the field staff’s resistance to implementing information from the club’s analytics department. (Now-former pitching coach Mike Butcher has since been reported to have been heavily resistant as well.) Owner Arte Moreno, it would seem, endorsed his manager over his GM, prompting Dipoto’s exit. Former GM Bill Stoneman assumed the vacated post for the remainder of the year, and Yankees assistant GM Billy Eppler was tabbed as the new GM shortly after their season ended.

Dipoto’s exit isn’t the only change, however, as assistant GMs Scott Servais and Matt Klentak have both departed. Servais will serve as manager of the Mariners, where Dipoto was hired as general manager, and Klentak was the hand-picked choice of Phillies president Andy MacPhail to succeed Ruben Amaro Jr. as GM. Special assistant Tim Bogar joined Servais in the Seattle dugout as the club’s bench coach. Suffice it to say, there will be a different brain trust making the calls in Anaheim this offseason.

And that new brain trust hasn’t taken any time to make an impact on the organization. A confession: this post was written and ready to go a few days ago, but it didn’t get onto the site with all of the activity going on at the GM Meetings. No big deal, right? It’s not like the Angels would do something to drastically re-structure the fabric of their organization in the few days between– Oh. Rewrite it is, then!

Eppler’s first move as GM might technically have been to claim Todd Cunningham off waivers last month, but everyone will remember that less than two months into his tenure, the Angels swung a blockbuster deal that sent Erick Aybar, left-hander Sean Newcomb and right-hander Chris Ellis to the Braves in exchange for Andrelton Simmons and minor leaguer Jose Briceno. With this trade, the Angels have dramatically altered the long-term configuration of their infield, proactively acquiring the game’s premier defensive player (sorry, Jason Heyward) in advance of a 2016-17 shortstop market that looks barren and will most likely be headlined by the very guy over whom the Halos would’ve been looking to upgrade (Aybar). Acquiring Simmons technically knocks $2.5MM off the 2016 payroll, but they’re covering that difference by sending the cash to the Braves, anyhow. The takeaway from the trade is that shortstop won’t be an issue for the Angels for the next half-decade.

What it means for the rest of the offseason is harder to figure, because the Halos didn’t really address an immediate need and burned some significant trade pieces in the process. There are still plenty of holes to address, and free agency now looks like the primary way to do it. That could mean that the team will need to be willing to forfeit draft picks to sign significant free agents.

The sting of sacrificing draft selections might have been lessened if the Angels had made a qualifying offer to David Freese on his way out the door. But there was a risk he’d have accepted, and the team ultimately elected to let him hit free agency unencumbered by draft pick compensation. Los Angeles still has interest in re-signing Freese at an annual rate less than the QO, though Freese currently leads a thin crop of free-agent third basemen, so he should have interest elsewhere also.

The Halos currently have about $145MM committed to next year’s payroll between guaranteed contracts, arbitration eligible players (minus non-tender candidate Collin Cowgill) and the $24MM they owe the Rangers for Josh Hamilton’s salary. The luxury tax ledger is calculated a bit differently — it’s based on average annual value of their contracts — but should come in just a few million north of that sum as it stands.

That outlook clears up significantly after 2016, when C.J. Wilson, Jered Weaver and Joe Smith are all free agents, although some of those departures highlight a clear need for the Angels this winter; starting pitching help that is controlled beyond 2016 will be a goal. When he was GM, Dipoto’s long-stated mission was to acquire cost-controlled arms, and he did well to acquire Andrew Heaney, Tyler Skaggs, Hector Santiago and Nick Tropeano via trades. However, Tropeano hasn’t proven himself in the Majors, and Skaggs is coming off Tommy John surgery from August of 2014. It’s nice to have options, but a team with the Angels’ financial firepower figures to spend on some stability as well, especially having dealt away a potential front-end starter in Newcomb.

Looking at what the Angels have in-house, Garrett Richards looks every bit the part of a budding ace, and Heaney has undoubtedly earned himself a long look in 2016 with a terrific rookie season. There’s little certainty beyond that duo, though, as even the names that comprised the 2015 rotation come with question marks. Matt Shoemaker was a brilliant rookie in 2014 but a wildly inconsistent sophomore whose end-of-year numbers from 2015 look like back-of-the-rotation production, at best. Weaver’s fastball velocity dipped to the low 80s, and he was hit hard and hit often in 2015. Wilson underwent season-ending elbow surgery in August. Santiago was excellent, but he hasn’t shown consistency in the Majors, as evidenced by losing his rotation spot with Anaheim as recently as 2014.

With that in mind, the Angels seem like logical players for free-agent help on the pitching market. Mid-level arms that could be had without significantly escalating the risk of crossing the luxury tax barrier include Wei-Yin Chen, Marco Estrada, Yovani Gallardo and Ian Kennedy, to name a few. As MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes pointed out to me recently, Eppler has  somewhat of a connection to Kennedy, having been in the Yankees front office while Kennedy was drafted and rose through the farm system.

A run at high-profile names — David Price, Zack Greinke, etc. — probably shouldn’t be entirely written off, although another $20MM+ AAV contract would bring the Halos significantly closer to the luxury tax threshold. It’s possible that the club could free up some room by moving Wilson, who apparently caused some frustration among his teammates when he opted to undergo his season-ending procedure. Moving Wilson’s $15.5MM annual salary wouldn’t offset a $30MM-per-year price tag on Price or the similarly lofty AAVs that other top-tier free agents will command, but it makes the blow easier for the Angels to absorb while leaving room to pursue other needs.

Turning to the ’pen, the Angels are in pretty good shape. Huston Street will return as the club’s closer after inking a two-year extension earlier this year. Joe Smith has been excellent in the first two seasons of a three-year deal, and he’ll be joined in the setup crew by righties Trevor Gott and Fernando Salas. Mike Morin figures to earn another chance as well. Though he slumped badly after a strong rookie showing in 2014, Morin’s strand rate (44.4%) was far and away the lowest in baseball of any pitcher with 30+ innings. That number screams “fluke,” and as such isn’t likely to be repeated. Morin’s 10.4 K/9, 2.3 BB/9 and 21.2 percent K%-BB% indicate better days ahead. Left-handed options include Cesar Ramos and Jose Alvarez, each of whom had strong seasons. Depth additions seem more likely than major adds, especially considering the fact that righty Cam Bedrosian, who dominated Triple-A but struggled in the Majors, figures to earn another shot at some point in 2016.

Pitching questions aside, the bigger needs for the Angels are on offense, where the club faces holes at catcher, second base, third base, in left field and possibly at DH. Chris Iannetta and David Freese are free agents, while left field was a revolving door in 2015. David Murphy, Matt Joyce, David DeJesus and Shane Victorino all saw time there but are all free agents now. Johnny Giavotella manned second base for much of the 2015 campaign after mainstay Howie Kendrick was traded for Heaney. Giavotella was slightly below the league average with the bat but also played questionable defense and lacks significant upside.

C.J. Cron appears set to open the season at first base in the wake of Albert Pujols’ foot surgery, and he should eventually split time with Pujols at first and DH. While neither is a great defensive option and Cron does have his flaws (namely, a lack of plate discipline), Cron has the power to join Pujols as a source of 30 home runs. While the former first-round pick struggled greatly for the first two months of the season and was demoted to Triple-A, he hit .285/.325/.507 with 15 homers over his final 290 plate appearances upon being recalled. Pujols should be ready to go in early May, but his absence could lead the Halos to seek a bit of power that could begin the season at DH and shift to the bench when Pujols is activated.

A versatile piece such as Daniel Murphy makes some sense for the Angels, who were said in July to be eyeing left-handed bats to fill out their roster. Murphy could serve as an upgrade over Giavotella at second base or see more regular time at the hot corner if Freese isn’t re-signed. Internal options such as Caleb Kowart and Kyle Kubitza have seen their stock tumble, as neither player’s power has developed as hoped. The trade market has options at either position, with names like Yunel Escobar, Trevor Plouffe, Luis Valbuena, Jed Lowrie, Javier Baez, Starlin Castro and Jedd Gyorko among the offseason’s potential trade candidates. The Angels are said, in particular, to be intrigued by Plouffe, who could be made available if and when Minnesota reaches an agreement with Korean slugger Byung-ho Park. Bedrosian is said to be one name that intrigues the Twins, who have their eyes on hard-throwing relief help.

Catcher is a similar situation, and the open market is rather devoid of talent now that both Matt Wieters and A.J. Pierzynski came off the board early. With Carlos Perez and Jett Bandy currently serving as the only MLB-ready options on the roster, there’s a need for some type of move. Potential trade candidates could include Jonathan Lucroy, Kurt Suzuki and Wilson Ramos, though Lucroy finished the season with concussion issues while Suzuki and Ramos each struggled greatly. If a longer-term add is the goal, then perhaps the Braves’ Christian Bethancourt or the Yankees’ Gary Sanchez are plausible options. Eppler is, after all, quite familiar with Sanchez from his time in New York.

One area in which the Angels could aim higher is in the outfield. While the team was said to prefer lefty bats this summer, it eventually warmed to right-handed hitters and was linked to Yoenis Cespedes and Justin Upton. Either of those players could reasonably fit into the club’s long-term plans, with only Mike Trout, Pujols, and now Simmons under control beyond the 2017 season. The AAV of the contract might present some problems, though the previously mentioned theoretical savings from a Wilson trade could be applied here as well. A run at Jason Heyward makes sense, too, especially if he can be had at a lower annual value over a longer term, as MLBTR’s Jeff Todd recently hypothesized in his free-agent profile. If the Simmons trade taught us one thing, it’s that prime-aged, elite defense holds great value to the restructured front office.

The Angels’ mega-signings of Pujols and Hamilton, plus significant second-tier expenditures have clogged their long-term outlook for years, but there’s a light at the end of the tunnel after the 2016 campaign. While the team shouldn’t necessarily look to repeat past mistakes and over-commit to aging sluggers, the current market features a number of more youthful options that could fit into the team’s long-term outlook or be locked up on shorter deals (e.g. a three- or four-year pact for a mid-tier starter).

The Angels have the financial means to spend on nearly any free agent, and with the team’s luxury tax fears likely to dissipate next winter, long-term commitments aren’t necessarily as problematic as they once were. Of course, some future cash could also go to extensions with players such as Calhoun and Richards, both of whom look like fairly appealing targets for long-term deals.

We can’t know for sure what to expect out of a rookie general manager — A.J. Preller taught us that much last winter — but Eppler made his presence felt with the Simmons trade, and in doing so, filled an impending but glaring need a year before it needed to be addressed. With a number of holes to fill and increasing spending capacity, I’d expect the Simmons swap to be just the first move of what should be a highly active offseason.

Angels Acquire Andrelton Simmons

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The Angels have officially agreed to acquire shortstop Andrelton Simmons from the Braves, along with catcher Jose Briceno. Lefty Sean Newcomb and righty Chris Ellis are going to Atlanta in return, along with long-time Halos shortstop Erick Aybar. The Braves will pick up $2.5MM in the swap to offset some of Aybar’s salary.

Sep 26, 2015; Miami, FL, USA; Atlanta Braves shortstop Andrelton Simmons (19) laughs while taking infield practice before a game against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Simmons, 26, is arguably the single best defensive player in the game today. Though he hasn’t been consistent offensively, he has a tremendous floor because of his glove, which is as pleasing to the eye as it is to defensive metrics.

Simmons has shown promise at the plate at times. In 2013, his first full season in the majors, he slashed .248/.296/.416 and hit 17 home runs. But Simmons’s isolated slugging has fallen off precipitously since, with his groundball rate rising and frequency of hard contact tailing off. While the high-contact hitter managed a .321 OBP last year, his overall batting contribution was valued at just an 82 wRC+.

Los Angeles will take over the extension that Simmons signed last winter with his now-former club, pursuant to which he is owed $53MM over the next five seasons. Notably, not much cash has run off of that contract since it was signed, as Simmons was paid just $5MM total from signing through 2015.

The 23-year-old Briceno is not a major part of the swap. He spent all of last year at the High-A level, his highest placement yet, and slashed a meager .183/.215/.267 over 327 plate appearances.

The Braves, meanwhile, receive two hurlers who were widely considered the best prospects in an already-depleted (and now largely barren) Los Angeles system. When combined with last winter’s trade haul, Atlanta now has a loaded store room of young arms to deploy at the major league level or utilize in future trades.

Newcomb, in particular, is a major asset, as he landed inside the top twenty on MLB.com’s latest league-wide prospects list. The 22-year-old southpaw climbed from Class A to Double-A over the 2015 season, producing excellent run prevention numbers along the way. He averaged double-digit strikeout-per-nine tallies as well, though his composite 5.0 BB/9 walk rate shows that he’s still in need of polishing.

The 23-year-old Ellis, meanwhile, isn’t viewed in the same tier as Newcomb. The University of Mississippi product did have a solid 2015, though, logging 140 2/3 frames of 3.90 ERA ball, split between High-A and Double-A. He struck out 8.4 and walked 4.0 batters per nine along the way, but that K:BB rate took a beating after his promotion.

Aybar will likely serve as a placeholder for the Braves, who have a highly-regarded young shortstop in Ozhaino Albies who is a few years off but moving quickly through the system. Depending upon how the offseason and season progress, Aybar could also end up a trade piece.

The 31-year-old had a down year in 2015, slashing just .270/.301/.338 in 638 trips to the plate. But he had posted slightly above-average numbers over the four preceding years. Aybar has drawn more or less average career ratings in the field, though both DRS and UZR saw him as sub-par last season.

All told, Aybar still profiles as an average or better regular heading into 2016. After all, he’s fifth in all of baseball in fWAR accumulated over the past five campaigns. His $8.5MM salary will be reduced to a $6MM total for Atlanta, which makes him plenty valuable despite his pending free agency after the coming season.

MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez reported the swap on Twitter. The package going to the Braves was reported by MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez (Twitter links) and Joel Sherman of the New York Post (also on Twitter). Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports (Twitter links) and Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times (on Twitter) reported Briceno’s involvement. MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweeted the monetary amount involved.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Braves Listening On Andrelton Simmons

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4:31pm: The Rockies are not engaged in trade talks regarding Simmons, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post reports on Twitter.

8:58am: The Mets checked in on Simmons this morning and were met with the asking price of Jacob deGrom or Matt Harvey, tweets Sherman, which is steeper than New York would care to pay.

NOV. 12, 7:09am: Joel Sherman of the New York Post hears that the Braves are indeed listening to offers for Simmons, and they’ve been in recent contact with the Padres, Dodgers and Angels (three Twitter links). The Braves recognize the weak free-agent market at shortstop and want to at least see what the return would be for Simmons considering how valuable he is. Sherman adds that the Mets haven’t checked in on Simmons yet, perhaps assuming that the Braves wouldn’t deal him within the NL East.

NOV. 11, 10:42pm: The Braves have discussed Simmons, but no deal is close at the moment, per MLB.com’s Mark Bowman (links to Twitter). They’re willing to listen, and as David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution adds (also via Twitter), Atlanta is determined to add multiple young, impact pieces without raising payroll much. Moving Simmons could achieve that goal, but the cost would assuredly be astounding for a player with as much surplus value on his contract as Simmons presently has.

10:31pm: The Padres have checked in on Simmons but nothing is close in terms of trade talks between the two sides, according to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union Tribune (Twitter link).

9:58pm: Keri now tweets that the Braves’ talks revolve around Andrelton Simmons. That doesn’t necessarily rule out any of the four remaining teams, as the Rockies and Padres could certainly use a long-term answer at shortstop and either the Dodgers or D-Backs could shuffle their current infield alignment to add a defender of Simmons’ caliber.

Simmons’ offensive output was down in 2015, but he remains arguably the game’s most elite defensive player and is under contract for another five seasons at a total of $53MM.

9:33pm: The Giants aren’t in talks with the Braves, both SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo and the San Francisco Chronicle’s Henry Schulman hear (links to Twitter).

9:11pm: The Braves are “deep” in trade talks with a yet-unnamed NL West club, reports Jonah Keri of ESPN (via Twitter). Clearly, there’s a lot left to the imagination with this report, but there’s enough to at least envision a few possibilities.

The Braves are known to be shopping expensive veterans Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn, though neither player is a desirable asset considering the $15MM each is owed in 2016. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported today that Cameron Maybin is available in trades, and Maybin could be a more appealing piece on the heels of the first fully healthy season he’s enjoyed since 2012. There’s also been speculation over the past several months that Atlanta could move on from formerly presumed catcher-of-the-future Christian Bethancourt, and the team did just reportedly agree to terms on a new one-year deal with A.J. Pierzynski earlier tonight. Other possibilities include Julio Teheran, whose name has been kicked around in trade rumors since the summer, and Mike Minor, whom the team is reportedly uncertain about tendering after he experienced a setback in his rehab from shoulder surgery.

A quick rundown of the NL West’s team needs: the Rockies could be looking for catching or pitching help, the Giants are reportedly interested in outfielders and rotation arms, the Diamondbacks are hunting for general pitching help (rotation or bullpen), the Dodgers are in much the same boat as the D-Backs, and the Padres could conceivably be looking to add in the outfield, infield or rotation. That creates a wide-ranging slate of possibilities, of course, though if a trade is indeed nearing fruition, further details are likely to be reported sooner rather than later.

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