Top 60 upcoming free agents

[floplag]

OK peeps here is your way to damn early off season shopping list.  Obviously this doesn't include possible opt outs and non tenders etc... but I'm curious so i thought id post it for the lulz and see what kind of discussion/arguments we cant start. 

https://www.fanragsports.com/mlb/inside-baseball-top-60-upcoming-free-agents/

So, where do we begin?  Arms, Bats, or do we at all and continue the bargain basement bridge the gap to 2020 plan?  

Have at it... ill chime in a little later    

[Angel Oracle]

As expected, Moustakas and the Halos are mentioned in the same breath.

Pitching wise, I can't see giving $175 million to Darvish.   Just use some of that for Shohei Otani and some more of it for a Tyler Chatwood reunion?

[totdprods]

I'll take it a position at a time....

Left Field:
With the exceptionally strong play of Hermosillo and Jones recently in the minors, I'm fully aboard the stopgap scenario in LF, barring of course a trade for something like Stanton or another huge name, which I still think is a reasonable possibility. I'm thinking someone on a one or two year deal, with at least one clear-cut strength, be it contact, power, or speed. Overall, the Angels need to add some of all three this offseason, and the there is sno shortage of should-be cheap FA OFs who fall into at least one of those categories. 
Contact:
Jon Jay: In '17: .284/.379/.371/.750, OPS+ of 97. Over his career, .287/.355/.383/.738, OPS+ of 103 
Melky Cabrera: In '17: .295/.336/.445/.781, OPS+ of 108. Over his career, .287/.337/.419/.756, OPS+ of 104 - batting average of .299 since 2011. 
Nothing exciting, but any are a good bet to come cheap and fill the 'Yunel Escobar' type production of a lot of singles, decent walks, not a lot of power, strikeouts, or speed.

Power:
Curtis Granderson: Started season ice-cold, but since May 3rd: (91 G, 322 PA): .258/.379/.569/.948 with 41 XBH, 51 BB, 72 K - could be Bobby Abreu, could be Raul Ibanez.
Carlos Gonzalez: Has always had extreme home/away splits and is having an awful year, but on a very cheap 1-year rebound deal I'd consider him.
Jayson Werth: Ancient and often hurt, but still posted a reasonable .262/.367/.446/.814, OPS+ of 109 this season.
Hopefully, none of these guys are our first choice at adding power to the line-up. If we've addressed power elsewhere in our needs, it's likelier we're looking at speed/contact in LF at this point.

Speed:
Jarrod Dyson: .255/.328/.355/.683 on the year. Dyson's 2.6 WAR generated this year would rank 3rd behind Trout and Simmons on the Angels.
If Maybin and Revere go elsewhere, we'll lose quite a bit of speed/SB. Provides elite defense too, and would shift nicely to 4th OF if Herm or Jones pushes. May be a little more expensive.

Wild Cards:
Cameron Maybin: His brutal second half (.176/.263/.196/.459) may limit him to one-year deals this offseason, which could keep him around. 
Ben Revere: His fantastic (by his standards) second half (.306/.362/.365/.726) may make him a more attractive option to retain over Maybin
Austin Jackson: In '17: .322/.391/.506/.897, OPS+ of 131 - nearly signed with Angels a couple offseasons ago, but balked at not getting a starting job. As a rotating OF this year, he's excelled. 

I can't see the Angels making a long-term commitment here...J.D. Martinez offers chingos of power (which we need) but will tie up quite a bit of money, isn't great defensively, and could potentially block a prospect. Upton, should he opt out, could be an option as he appears to be a little safer in terms of overall production for a couple seasons (even if he regresses or Uptons on us) as he can at least field and run over Martinez. 

[Vegas Halo Fan]

Melky Cabrera is 33, the age at which production can fall off quickly and without warning (see Vernon Wells, who was 32 when we acquired him). Granderson is 36, wouldn't touch him. Werth is 38. I wouldn't offer any of them personally, even as a stop-gap measure.

[totdprods]

I'll take it a position at a time....

Third Base/Second Base:
I'm lumping these in together because I think ultimately they'll be tied together one way or another based on how Kaleb Cowart wraps the year. Additionally, if guys like Luis Valbuena and Jefry Marte wrap the year strong, Yunel Escobar's days as an Angel will be over. If both of those players flop, I wouldn't rule out the return of Yunel quite yet, and could see the club having some mild interest in him as a UT 1B/3B complimenting Valbuena ---- if Yunel is open to it. Ultimately, there is so much smoke regarding Mike Moustakas (and logical sense) that I do agree with the belief he will ultimately sign with the Angels - he offers a long-term option at 3B (we don't have one if Cowart sticks at 2B) and brings power to the line-up. Should that situation play out, I think the Angels should pursue a UT IF who could capably cover 2B in the event Kaleb Cowart winds up falling back to pre-'17 numbers. Given Scioscia's proclivity for platoons and match-ups, we may need a solid UT IF regardless:

Assuming the Angels sign Moustakas, and if Cowart doesn't totally seal the deal...
Eduardo Nunez: Has been red-hot offensively with the Red Sox (.952 OPS in 22 G, 106 PA) but is more of a high contact, high speed, defense/versatility option. Would steal quite a few ABs away from Cowart to the point where we may see him become the UT IF. Could spell Simmons at SS.
Neil Walker: Has had enough injury issues in recent years that Cowart could still see a good bit of time at 2B, but would likely relegate Kaleb to AAA (doubt they see Kaleb as more than an emergency option at SS considering how long it took them to feel comfortable with his defense at 2B)

If the Angels wind up feeling that Moustakas is too expensive....(And Valbuena, Marte, Cowart, and Escobar finish the year strong)....
I honestly could see them standing pat, with Escobar potentially playing himself into a return if he ends September hot and another falls flat. Valbuena and Marte would form a straight platoon at 3B, Cron's recent hot play keeps him at 1B full-time, and Cowart sticks at second. Marte and Cron will both be out of options in 2018, so they either have to stick in Anaheim or likely wind up dealt/claimed.

Totally unexpected option...
Zack Cozart: Having a career year (.312/.405/.572/.977, OPS+ of 151, 50 BB, 57 K, 4.1 WAR, 44 XBH) at 31. 
It'd require a position switch (not likely, not impossible though) and there will be concerns about his season being a fluke, but his numbers aren't far from those of Daniel Murphy or Justin Turner who also became major offensive threats around the age of 31 after years of average production.

One way or another, the Angels will need to replace Pennington next season as no one else on the roster can cover SS, so expect the Angels to consider some form of a UT IF. 

[totdprods]

2 minutes ago, Vegas Halo Fan said:

Melky Cabrera is 33, the age at which production can fall off quickly and without warning (see Vernon Wells, who was 32 when we acquired him). Granderson is 36, wouldn't touch him. Werth is 38. I wouldn't offer any of them personally, even as a stop-gap measure.

And Bobby Abreu was 35, Torii Hunter arguably got better at 33. Yunel Escobar's steadiest production has come between 32 and 34.
At age 36, Hideki Matsui gave us an OPS+ of 126, which would be second on this team after Mike Trout.

Justin Turner is turning in his best season at 32, Daniel Murphy became an MVP runner-up at 31 after a fairly benign career.

I don't doubt you when you say that any of those can turn into pumpkins, but just because a player is 32, 33, 37 means they're at the end of their expiration date (Bartolo Colon), and with the way the Angels are focusing on year-to-year payroll commitments with a stocked minor league outfield, I think it's likeliest they're going to go with an old/vet stopgap in LF whether or not we think those players are too old.

[totdprods]

First Base:
The scorching hot play of Luis Valbuena and C.J. Cron is quickly erasing this from the offseason needs, combined in the 2nd half: .275/.353/.645/.998 with 9 2B, 18 HR, 44 RBI but with 3B potentially opening up for Valbuena and Cron's consistent struggles (and the fact he's out of options) on the horizon in 2018, the Angels could still look to add at 1B and re-deploy their 1B depth at other positions or in trades. Can't really see the Angels looking too hard at 1B unless they feel like they won't sign Moustakas or acquire a legit slugger for LF like Stanton. 

Eric Hosmer will cost a fortune and while he doesn't do any one thing exceptionally well, he's highly admired in the clubhouse and is a pretty strong player across the board entering his prime. Does not seem like the wisest use of payroll given other needs and as such not a likely fit, but I don't think anyone would really complain if he was added. 

Carlos Santana is steady is as steady comes, with rock-solid numbers at every split imaginable - home/away, left/right, high leverage/low leverage, AL West parks, finesse pitchers/power pitchers. He's a switch hitter with power, a lot of discipline, a bit of defensive versatility (for another season or two) and is having just enough of a down year that he may fall into that DH/1B purgatory so many FAs found themselves in last-year. While his profile is much more than that of Luis Valbuena, I could see him being a similar dark-horse candidate to Valbuena in being a player who is just too solid all around offensively to pass up if his price-tag and availability are in the Angels range, should his market fail to materialize quickly. To a lesser degreem Lucas Duda and Logan Morrison could find themselves in similar situations, and could also fall into the Angels crosshairs. 
 

[totdprods]

Will tackle pitchers later, but, offensively, I think we will see...

Moustakas at 3B...
A stopgap LF (likely of the contact/speed type)...
a UT IF who can cover SS, likely a waiver claim/non tender/minor trade, but maybe more if the price is right and Cowart ends shakily....
Internal candidates at 1B and bench corner-infielder...

[krAbs]

Just now, totdprods said:

Will tackle pitchers later, but, offensively, I think we will see...

Moustakas at 3B...
A stopgap LF (likely of the contact/speed type)...
a UT IF who can cover SS, likely a waiver claim/non tender/minor trade, but maybe more if the price is right and Cowart ends shakily....
Internal candidates at 1B and bench corner-infielder...

SS or 2B?

Yeah, paying big money for a long term LF solution feels like a mistake with the amount of OF talent we have coming down the pipes.

[DMVol]

12 minutes ago, totdprods said:

First Base:
The scorching hot play of Luis Valbuena and C.J. Cron is quickly erasing this from the offseason need.....

Scorching hot play in July/August doesn't take 1b from the list of needs....the season starts in April....

[totdprods]

4 minutes ago, krAbs said:

SS or 2B?

Yeah, paying big money for a long term LF solution feels like a mistake with the amount of OF talent we have coming down the pipes.

It's looking like Kaleb will stick at 2B, but seeing as how the Angels waited a full year before they felt he can handle 2B defensively, I highly doubt they'd entrust him as our back-up SS. 
If Kaleb doesn't end the year too strong and they don't have aspirations to sign Moustakas, I think they should prioritize a Nunez, Forsythe, Lowrie type - someone who can jump around at 3B, SS, and 2B. 

If Kaleb holds it down, they really don't need anything more than a John McDonald/Featherston/Pennington type next year. Someone to spell Simmons here and there. 

[totdprods]

2 minutes ago, DMVol said:

Scorching hot play in July/August doesn't take 1b from the list of needs....the season starts in April....

I agree that as of today it should still be an area of concern, but if Valbuena and Cron end the year strong, I imagine they'll roll the dice and go with what's in house, or at the very least, wait very late into the offseason and nab a FA 1B whose market never materialized. If we didn't have so many holes elsewhere I think they'd view it as a top concern regardless of how those two performed to end the year, but with those two under contract (Marte too) for '18 they have to choose their battles.

With Cron and Marte having had shitty years and both being out of options next year, they also won't have much trade value (unless they finish the year scalding hot, and even then, it'll be a little diminished given how poor they were overall) and may have the best shot at providing value by starting the year with club. If they're tanking end of April, they're goners. Won't have any trade value then, but probably don't have enough now either to risk it.

[Blarg]

Even though @Inside Pitch described Revere as having an empty batting line, I grown to appreciate having him in a utility role. Even though you're not getting much out of his bat in terms of slugging percentage he is capable of role play with the bat, hitting the other way and laying down a respectable bunt. Once on base he draws a lot of pitcher attention which helps the running game, hit and run, steals, advancing on mistakes or just staying out of a double play. I would like to see him pick another year in the same role with the Angels.

[krAbs]

I like this lineup if Cowart and Cron keep it up this year:

Dyson (LF)
Trout (CF)
Mouse (3b)
Pujols (DH) [sigh...]
Simmons (SS)
Calhoun (RF)
Cron (1B)
Cowart (2B)
Maldenado (C)

Rich
Heaney
Skaggs
Trop
Bridwell

All star caliber OF coming up the pipeline. Re-build the BP with spare parts, which appears to be Eppler's specialty. Leave JC as long relief, keep Meyer and Smith as minor league starters to call up when we need them, see if you can trade shoe or something (I've given up on him - maybe someone else would be willing to take a chance on him, but I don't want him screwing up our rotation).

How much money do we have to play with? I feel like we have a lot of cash left on the table if we do the above - not necessarily the end of the world, but still. Maybe it wouldn't be crazy to grab an ace, and trade a starter? I hear cost controlled young high ceiling starting pitchers are all the rage these days.

[SlappyUtilityMIF]

1 hour ago, totdprods said:

I'll take it a position at a time....

Left Field:
With the exceptionally strong play of Hermosillo and Jones recently in the minors, I'm fully aboard the stopgap scenario in LF, barring of course a trade for something like Stanton or another huge name, which I still think is a reasonable possibility. I'm thinking someone on a one or two year deal, with at least one clear-cut strength, be it contact, power, or speed. Overall, the Angels need to add some of all three this offseason, and the there is sno shortage of should-be cheap FA OFs who fall into at least one of those categories. 
Contact:
Jon Jay: In '17: .284/.379/.371/.750, OPS+ of 97. Over his career, .287/.355/.383/.738, OPS+ of 103 
Melky Cabrera: In '17: .295/.336/.445/.781, OPS+ of 108. Over his career, .287/.337/.419/.756, OPS+ of 104 - batting average of .299 since 2011. 
Nothing exciting, but any are a good bet to come cheap and fill the 'Yunel Escobar' type production of a lot of singles, decent walks, not a lot of power, strikeouts, or speed.

Power:
Curtis Granderson: Started season ice-cold, but since May 3rd: (91 G, 322 PA): .258/.379/.569/.948 with 41 XBH, 51 BB, 72 K - could be Bobby Abreu, could be Raul Ibanez.
Carlos Gonzalez: Has always had extreme home/away splits and is having an awful year, but on a very cheap 1-year rebound deal I'd consider him.
Jayson Werth: Ancient and often hurt, but still posted a reasonable .262/.367/.446/.814, OPS+ of 109 this season.
Hopefully, none of these guys are our first choice at adding power to the line-up. If we've addressed power elsewhere in our needs, it's likelier we're looking at speed/contact in LF at this point.

Speed:
Jarrod Dyson: .255/.328/.355/.683 on the year. Dyson's 2.6 WAR generated this year would rank 3rd behind Trout and Simmons on the Angels.
If Maybin and Revere go elsewhere, we'll lose quite a bit of speed/SB. Provides elite defense too, and would shift nicely to 4th OF if Herm or Jones pushes. May be a little more expensive.

Wild Cards:
Cameron Maybin: His brutal second half (.176/.263/.196/.459) may limit him to one-year deals this offseason, which could keep him around. 
Ben Revere: His fantastic (by his standards) second half (.306/.362/.365/.726) may make him a more attractive option to retain over Maybin
Austin Jackson: In '17: .322/.391/.506/.897, OPS+ of 131 - nearly signed with Angels a couple offseasons ago, but balked at not getting a starting job. As a rotating OF this year, he's excelled. 

I can't see the Angels making a long-term commitment here...J.D. Martinez offers chingos of power (which we need) but will tie up quite a bit of money, isn't great defensively, and could potentially block a prospect. Upton, should he opt out, could be an option as he appears to be a little safer in terms of overall production for a couple seasons (even if he regresses or Uptons on us) as he can at least field and run over Martinez. 

Out of this group the only way and one I see is Ben Revere: His fantastic (by his standards) second half (.306/.362/.365/.726) may make him a more attractive option to retain over Maybin.. And he will be less expensive than Maybin!.

The rest are meh, aging, or broken parts that may or may not be having career years. Ex. Austin Jackson: (Why do the stats across a full season? When he hasn't done it across any full season in his career since he was 25 (Or, 5 years ago? and you expect him suddenly to turn into this great player at 30?? Maybe, he found a hitting philosophy he can understand or has finally tried doing it another way)???    Once again doing the same thing wondering why the results aren't different = Stupidity

[Inside Pitch]

10 minutes ago, Blarg said:

Even though @Inside Pitch described Revere as having an empty batting line, I grown to appreciate having him in a utility role. Even though you're not getting much out of his bat in terms of slugging percentage he is capable of role play with the bat, hitting the other way and laying down a respectable bunt. Once on base he draws a lot of pitcher attention which helps the running game, hit and run, steals, advancing on mistakes or just staying out of a double play. I would like to see him pick another year in the same role with the Angels.

He's fine as a utility player IMO.    But when the talk shifts to how he's a great leadoff hitter....   Well, no.

[totdprods]

11 minutes ago, SlappyUtilityMIF said:

Out of this group the only way and one I see is Ben Revere: His fantastic (by his standards) second half (.306/.362/.365/.726) may make him a more attractive option to retain over Maybin.. And he will be less expensive than Maybin!.

The rest are meh, aging, or broken parts that may or may not be having career years. Ex. Austin Jackson: (Why do the stats across a full season? When he hasn't done it across any full season in his career since he was 25 (Or, 5 years ago? and you expect him suddenly to turn into this great player at 30?? Maybe, he found a hitting philosophy he can understand or has finally tried doing it another way)???    Once again doing the same thing wondering why the results aren't different = Stupidity

Because my posts are already long enough without me adding 2017 lines, three year averages, career lines, etc. 
He's having a good year this year. He was having shitty years a couple years ago when he nearly signed with the Angels. If they were down to sign him then when he had shitty numbers, why wouldn't they be interested now when he's having a good season? And it's been over a fairly good stretch (200-300 PAs, off top of head) so not too small a sample size. 

The readiness of Hermosillo - and even Jahmai at this point - dictates how much interest we have in a LF. 
I'm an advocate of moving players a little more slowly through the chain but I'm even now starting to think there's a chance Hermosillo makes it up in September, and Jones could very well be here sometime in '18. If the Angels FO feels the same, we really only need a depthy/warm body type to pencil in at LF to start '17 just for the sake of depth/insurance. I don't really think any of those guys are great players or worth more than 1 or 2 year deals at a few mil.

If all they need is a warm body for LF to run the bases, play decent defense and just be okay with a bat, then I can see Revere or Jackson as a totally legit option to return. Both of those guys would be fine 4th OFs if Hermosillo took the every gig after a few weeks.

[DMVol]

17 minutes ago, Inside Pitch said:

He's fine as a utility player IMO.    But when the talk shifts to how he's a great leadoff hitter....   Well, no.

He's not a great leadoff guy but we haven't had a decent leadoff guy since Figgins (I may be missing somebody---I guess Trout qualifies since he has been in the leadoff spot some)......As for being a utility guy, he has seemingly hit better with regular AB's....but that's probably true with most players.....Depending on whether we find an offseason LF solution, I might bring him back as a 4th OF'er....

[totdprods]

2 minutes ago, DMVol said:

He's not a great leadoff guy but we haven't had a decent leadoff guy since Figgins (I may be missing somebody---I guess Trout qualifies since he has been in the leadoff spot some)......As for being a utility guy, he has seemingly hit better with regular AB's....but that's probably true with most players.....Depending on whether we find an offseason LF solution, I might bring him back as a 4th OF'er....

Lead-off is definitely a big concern and I don't know how they address it without either thrusting Simmons into it (not a good idea IMO, yet) or returning to Maybin (or someone similar) on a one-year deal. I just don't see it coming at IF.

[Angel Oracle]

If Moose is too expensive, are there any juniors this coming college season who can play 3B and project to being a mid-1st round pick?   Maybe that person would only need 1.5 seasons in the minors, and thus the Halos would just need a stop gap 3B for 2018-2019 NOT named Noscobar.  

[DMVol]

11 minutes ago, totdprods said:

Lead-off is definitely a big concern and I don't know how they address it without either thrusting Simmons into it (not a good idea IMO, yet) or returning to Maybin (or someone similar) on a one-year deal. I just don't see it coming at IF.

True leadoff hitters are hard to find....I think most teams just do the best they can, mix and match....pretty much what Scioscia does...It's late August and Maybin is in the .230's and his career average is in the .250's so it's hard to really call him a leadoff guy....

[totdprods]

1 minute ago, DMVol said:

True leadoff hitters are hard to find....I think most teams just do the best they can, mix and match....pretty much what Scioscia does...It's late August and Maybin is in the .230's and his career average is in the .250's so it's hard to really call him a leadoff guy....

In terms of what's available via FA though, there isn't anyone much better than Maybin besides the same clump of guys mentioned above or Lorenzo Cain, who I like, but would cost a fortune and require quite a few years. Maybin's been ice-cold but he's still walking, stealing, and not striking out too often, and he's shown glimpses of being worth the risk.

[Inside Pitch]

1 minute ago, DMVol said:

True leadoff hitters are hard to find....I think most teams just do the best they can, mix and match....pretty much what Scioscia does...It's late August and Maybin is in the .230's and his career average is in the .250's so it's hard to really call him a leadoff guy....

Batting average is second to OBP at leadoff...    Revere is hitting 20 points higher than Maybin while putting up an OBP 40 points lower...   Not making outs is the name of the game at leadoff.

[totdprods]

Just now, Inside Pitch said:

Batting average is second to OBP at leadoff...    Revere is hitting 20 points higher than Maybin while putting up an OBP 40 points lower...   Not making outs is the name of the game at leadoff.

And if you have Mike Trout hitting behind you, being able to steal a base to get into scoring position helps too.

[Inside Pitch]

4 minutes ago, totdprods said:

And if you have Mike Trout hitting behind you, being able to steal a base to get into scoring position helps too.

They both run well ....   if only Maybin could stay healthy....