Angels Rumors

Boras Talks Damon, Andruw, Manny

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 13, 2011 at 12:06pm CDT

Scott Boras told ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick that Johnny Damon, Andruw Jones and Manny Ramirez can boost fan interest, TV ratings and revenue for MLB teams. Not only that, the agent insists his clients can be key players on winning clubs.

"These guys are star players," Boras said. "They're championship-caliber players. Owners and general managers know they have extraordinary abilities, and they can be a force in the locker room and around young players."

Crasnick surveyed MLB executives and scouts about the three stars and heard the Angels and Rays mentioned as possibilities for Damon. The Dodgers, who have also been linked to the 37-year-old, are “unlikely” to sign him, according to a source familiar with the team’s thinking. The Yankees haven’t ruled out a reunion with Damon, but they’re only interested in him as a fourth outfielder, according to Crasnick.

Jones, another Yankees target, “still has value as an extra outfielder who can fill in at all three spots and mash left-handed pitching," an AL assistant GM said. The Braves briefly discussed a reunion with Jones and the Rockies are another possible fit.

Despite speculation that Ramirez could be a fit in Toronto, where former Red Sox coach John Farrell will take over as manager, it isn’t a likely match. In fact, Crasnick suggests Farrell’s familiarity with the slugger could make the Jays less likely to sign Manny. Tampa Bay could be a fit for Ramirez, who definitely wants to play in 2011, according to Boras.

Quick Hits: Soriano, Manuel, Galarraga, Angels

By Mark Polishuk | January 12, 2011 at 11:16pm CDT

Some items from around the majors…

The Angels aren't one of the teams reportedly still interested in Rafael Soriano, tweets Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated. The Yankees are "still trying," in spite of their earlier statements to the contrary.
Charlie Manuel's agent tells Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com that Manuel and the Phillies have a mutual interest in working out a contract extension before Opening Day. Manuel has one year left on his current deal, and Salisbury speculates that he's looking for a two-year extension worth roughly $4MM per season.
Armando Galarraga is out of options, eligible for arbitration and has probably been squeezed out of the Detroit rotation by Brad Penny, reports Jason Beck of MLB.com. If Galarraga gets too large of a salary bump in arbitration, the Tigers could choose to trade or just release him before Opening Day.
The Angels' quiet offseason has been heavily criticized, but Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com reminds us that the Halos still have a very solid team.
If the Twins don't re-sign Jim Thome, Kelly Thesier of MLB.com says the team could return to what it was looking for last winter: a right-handed hitting backup option in the outfield or at first base. Thesier cites Jorge Cantu and Troy Glaus as possibilities, and we've heard the Padres were considering the same two players. The Twins could also dip into the rest of the DH market, or look to upgrade their bullpen.
There isn't much historial evidence to suggest that Josh Beckett will return to his ace form over the long run, writes John Tomase of the Boston Herald.

Angels Agree To Terms With Jeff Mathis

By Mark Polishuk | January 12, 2011 at 5:43pm CDT

The Angels have agreed to terms with Jeff Mathis to a one-year contract, avoiding arbitration with the catcher, according to a team press release. Mathis will earn $1.7MM in 2011, reports Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times.

This was Mathis' second arbitration year, and he earned $1.3MM in 2010 after winning an arbitration case with Los Angeles last February. (The Halos offered $0.7M.) Mathis, 27, has served as the Angels' backup to Mike Napoli behind the plate for the last four seasons. Mathis has just a .199/.265/.311 slash line in 1079 career plate appearances, but the Halos value him for his defense.

Mathis is the second arb-eligible player to settle a contract with the Angels in as many days, following Alberto Callaspo's $2MM deal yesterday. Los Angeles still has six more players eligible for arbitration, including such notables as Howie Kendrick, Kendry Morales, Napoli and Jered Weaver.

Angels, Callaspo Avoid Arbitration

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 11, 2011 at 2:00pm CDT

The Angels agreed to a one-year contract with Alberto Callaspo, avoiding arbitration, according to the team. The sides agreed to a $2MM deal, according to the AP (via the Miami Herald). The 27-year-old was arbitration eligible for the first time.

In 601 total plate appearances last year, Callaspo hit .265/.302/.374. He walks nearly as often as he strikes out (31BB, 42K) and can play second, third and, on occasion, the outfield.

As MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, the Angels still have a full slate of arbitration eligible players: Erick Aybar, Howie Kendrick, Jeff Mathis, Kendry Morales, Mike Napoli, Jered Weaver and Reggie Willits.

Quick Hits: Yankees, Bonderman, Reds, Thome

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 10, 2011 at 10:38pm CDT

The Giants signed Aubrey Huff on this date in 2010. The first baseman hit .290/.385/.506 and the Giants won the World Series. Here are some links and news items to look through while we await the bargain signing of the 2010-11 offseason…

Jack Curry of the YES Network tweets that while the Yankees continue to monitor the starting pitcher market, we shouldn't expect them to sign Jeremy Bonderman. The Yanks showed interest in the right-hander about a week ago.
"I think I'm done," said Reds GM Walt Jocketty to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon. "[Today's Fred Lewis and Edgar Renteria signings] are a couple of pieces we felt we needed."
ESPN's Buster Olney wonders if the Twins' interest in Jim Thome is limited because they know he won't play as much in 2010 with Justin Morneau returning (Twitter links). He adds that once Thome comes off the board, the free agent DH logjam should clear up. Earlier today we learned that the Rangers' were after the man with the eighth most homers in baseball history (589).
Padres' GM Jed Hoyer told MLB.com's Corey Brock that the team's payroll is in the mid-$40MM range, so they do have a little more money to spend (Twitter link).
Scott Thorman and Fu-Te Ni are among the Tigers' non-roster invitees, according to the team. Manager Jim Leyland's son Patrick will also be in camp.
As Yahoo's Jeff Passan explains in his examination of the Padres' offseason, it doesn't make sense for San Diego to extend Heath Bell. You can discuss Bell's future right here.
Chad Jennings of the Journal News takes our list of top remaining free agents and considers whether those players would fit on the Yankees.
MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince points out that the Cardinals have limited time to figure out an extension with Albert Pujols. The Cards started talks with their first baseman and they appear to be going well at this point.
Angels manager Mike Scioscia tells MLB.com's Lyle Spencer that he'd like to add a player with a high on base percentage.

Yankees Still In On Soriano

By Zachary Links | January 8, 2011 at 1:38pm CDT

Despite Yankees GM Brian Cashman's insistence that the club will not surrender a first-round pick to sign any of the currently available Type A free agents, they are still in on Rafael Soriano, according to Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter). Scott Boras, who represents the 31-year-old, recently said that his client would be open to a set-up role with the Yanks.

Meanwhile, Heyman says that the Angels could make a play for the right-hander, though the club needs to prioritize hitting over pitching. The White Sox have also been linked to Soriano but they are unlikely to pursue him unless his price drops significantly. We can also cross the Cardinals off of the list of potential suitors for Soriano as the club is said to be confident in both Mitchell Boggs and Jason Motte.

Olney’s Latest: Garza, Angels, Delgado, Yankees

By Mike Axisa | January 8, 2011 at 10:00am CDT

In today's blog post at ESPN (Insider req'd), Buster Olney solicited the opinions of various talent evaluators about yesterday's Matt Garza trade. The general consensus is that the Cubs made the move with the idea of contending in 2011 while the Rays made the move geared towards reloading for the future, somewhat acknowledging that the upcoming season "will be very difficult."

Here are the rest of Olney's rumors…

Two sources tell Buster that the Angels' final offer to Adrian Beltre was $77MM guaranteed, or $3MM less than the guarantee he got from Texas.
Carlos Delgado wants to come back, but it'll be very tough to do so when the free agent market features plenty of healthier DH-types.
The Yankees are seeking a capable back-of-the-rotation innings-eater, but there are very few pitchers that fit that description available.

AL West Notes: Young, Sweeney, Angels

By Mark Polishuk | January 7, 2011 at 9:48pm CDT

Some news items from the western side of the American League…

Michael Young has said he's open to being a primary DH in the wake of the Rangers' acquisition of Adrian Beltre, but ESPNDallas.com's Jeff Caplan wonders if the career infielder will get "bored" from not playing in the field. Caplan talks to Lance Berkman, who signed with St. Louis in part because he disliked being a designated hitter, about the transition away from fielding.
As part of an MLB.com mailbag, Greg Johns reports the Mariners ended up receiving cash from the Phillies in the Mike Sweeney trade last August, rather than a player to be named later. From the same piece, Johns also shoots down the idea of Seattle trading Felix Hernandez or signing Jermaine Dye.
In regards to the Angels' lack of major free agent signings, manager Mike Scioscia said "These contracts just ran away from what our team can do," during an interview on 710 ESPN Radio's Mason & Ireland Show (as reported by ESPNLosAngeles.com's Mark Saxon). Scioscia noted the club might have "some other minor things" in the works.
Eric Denton of LAAngelsInsider.com wonders if the Angels would be better served by rebuilding and putting "some long term pieces in place for the Mike Trout era."

Orioles, Angels, Rays Interested In Vladimir Guerrero

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 6, 2011 at 12:27pm CDT

The Orioles, Angels and Rays have shown different levels of interest in Vladimir Guerrero, according to Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com. Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles heard this week that the Halos weren’t talking to the DH, but a return to Anaheim remains possible for the longtime Angel.

A return to Texas is no longer a possibility, as Rangers GM Jon Daniels said the team is not pursuing Guerrero. Vlad, who turns 36 next month, hit .300/.345/.496 with 29 homers last year. He made his ninth All-Star team and earned his eighth Silver Slugger, finishing 11th in MVP balloting.

The Orioles would have to play Luke Scott in the outfield if they were to sign Guerrero. That would create a logjam with Scott, Felix Pie and Nolan Reimold battling for one outfield spot (assuming Adam Jones and Nick Markakis play every day). The Angels would have to play Bobby Abreu or Juan Rivera in the outfield on a daily basis if they sign Guerrero instead of a player who can patrol the outfield. The Rays could offer Guerrero a full-time DH job and they appear to be a better fit than the O's or Angels.

Discussion: The Angels’ Offseason

By Mark Polishuk | January 5, 2011 at 10:59pm CDT

Three months ago, who would've guessed that the Dodgers would have the most active winter of any Los Angeles ballclub? Following a barrage of criticism from fans and media over how the McCourts' divorce and ownership dispute was hurting the franchise, the Dodgers added a bullpen arm in Matt Guerrier, rebuilt their catching corps following Russell Martin's departure, and re-signed all three of their free agent starters (Hiroki Kuroda, Ted Lilly, Vicente Padilla), also adding Jon Garland to the rotation to boot. Not every move has been well-received — the Juan Uribe contract jumps to mind — but overall, it's been a solid offseason for the Dodgers.

Compare their situation to that of L.A.'s other team. The Angels suffered their first sub-.500 season since 2003 and looked primed to add at least one top-tier free agent to their roster. Almost all of the Halos' top targets, however, went elsewhere: Carl Crawford signed with Boston, Adrian Beltre signed with Texas and some longer-shot targets that the Angels at least mildly explored (Cliff Lee, Derrek Lee, an Adrian Gonzalez trade) failed to pan out. The club added left-handers Scott Downs and Hisanori Takahashi to the bullpen, but those have been GM Tony Reagins' only major moves of the winter.

In the wake of Beltre signing with a division rival, the knives have come out in regards to the Angels' underwhelming winter. Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com says "not only have the Angels shown they're not prepared to compete financially with the big boys, but they've shown they can't even compete financially with the big boys in their own division." Fanhouse.com's Tom Krasovic says the club has had "one stinker of an offseason…so far" and quotes an unnamed AL executive who says that missing out on Crawford was a big mistake.

"If [the Angels] are being scared off from premium players in the market, they're in big trouble," said the AL executive. "They don't have a lot of talent coming up. They are known for being difficult to trade with. They are going to have to spend wisely in free agent to make up that difference, but that's getting harder and harder to do with what's out there."

Reagins told MLB.com's Lyle Spencer during the Winter Meetings that the Angels wanted to stay away from "unaffordable bidding wars" over players who were asking for more than the Halos thought they were worth. This policy certainly has merit, and given that L.A. had signed the likes of Torii Hunter and Bobby Abreu in recent years, Los Angeles can't be criticized for ignoring the free agent front. As Knobler points out, however, it doesn't make the team look good when owner Arte Moreno promises to spend and then comes up short.

Spencer also notes that the Angels didn't do anything this winter to combat the perception that they aren't "capable of engaging [Scott] Boras in meaningful dialogue," which is an obvious issue given the number of top players Boras represents. Rafael Soriano, for instance, is a Boras client, though even if the Angels went after the top-rated free agent left on the market, a top closer is a much less pressing need for the Halos given the Downs and Takahashi signings and the presence of Fernando Rodney.

MLBTR's Tim Dierkes identified a third baseman, an outfielder/DH type and a leadoff man as the primary "unfinished business" the Angels had to address before Opening Day, mentioning recent rumors tying the club to the likes of Scott Podsednik and Johnny Damon. The Rangers' signing of Beltre also may open the door for Vladimir Guerrero to return to Los Angeles, while Spencer suggests the Angels might consider trying to re-acquire another former Halo in Chone Figgins.

There's still plenty of time for the Angels to make moves that will make their team better next year, but barring something surprising, it will be hard for the team to shake the perception (or perhaps its own feelings) that the 2010-11 offseason was a missed opportunity.

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