Dave Saltzer

Baseball may be getting PEDs out of the game, but clearly the crack pipe is still being passed around the player agents!

If we could get Chavez for about $2.5-$3 million on a 1-year deal, maybe with an option, and have him get about 200-250 ABs between 3B, 1B and DH, I think that would be good. He could provide relief for Freese at 3B once a week and Pujols at 1B once a week. That should still leave enough to get Garza.

Both are risks. One is injury prone. One is 41. Both are lefties. Of the two, I think Chavez could be had for less money than Ibanez. We don't have much depth at 3B. If we have to play Romine or Jimenez there, we would be back to a huge dropoff in production for the lineup in that spot. And, if we have to play Calhoun at 1B, we have to play Shuck back in the OF.

Given all of that, I could easily see the Angels going back and signing Chavez to backup both corner infield spots and get an occasional DH start.

What do you guys think?

This morning my sons were talking about Pujols is going to come back big-time next year and that Trout should bat third in front of him. I may have to write another article!

I followed your lead Ellen and stayed in the same spot. Good article on the joy of the day!

Welcome aboard! Good article out of the gate. I disagree about giving them a plaque in the HOF because that will then lead to the extension for all agents and I do not think that they should be in there. I think that possibly making an exhibit about the labor issues and the change to free agency would be worthwhile, and included in that should be stuff on Curt Flood and others who helped change the game. That would be informative and educational for all visitors.

Dave, hang up and drive!

And miss a chance to get some more info???? Never!!!!! (and who cares about the 4 hour delay I caused on the I-5!

Good stuff, Dave.  This was me the last two days.

I'm willing to bet that you weren't the only one . . . Look at my sentence for how the word is used in context.

Quite happy to let others twitterpate for me.

Thanks AW.

AngelsWin.com's new slogan: Where Angels fans go to twitterpate!

Good analysis. This was a clear win, even if I will miss seeing the Trumbombs in Anaheim.

Curious how does trumbo save money to sign a fa bat and arm? Maybe I missed something but isn't Trumbo either 1st year arbitration or less. I don't know much about it?

Just answering the question in the title thread . . . He gets his car insurance at Geico.

Good job! Way to get something out there in a hurry.

Is this our longest thread ever Chuck?

Trading Trumbo for Ordorizzi or Walker would leave us about $20 million to use to sign Garza without hitting g the payroll tax. If the Mariners land Cano, then all 3 teams are improved and in a win now mode.

Why not just go after Walker and make the trade a 3-way with the Angels trading Trumbo to the Rays and getting Walker from the Mariners?

Good article Greg!

Thanks Dave as always!

NP Ettin. Trying to give you guys the straight scoops on things. I'll leave it to Alden, Fletcher and DiGi to give you all the exact quotes and put it all into an article. But, I thought I'd give you my take-a-way items. Yes, I know about the Jepsen tendering thing, but two things: 1) I'm never going to tweet something like that out faster than Alden--He's a twitter ninja. 2) Since they said that they would have final decisions out to us later, I thought I would hold off until everything became official.

Here are some of my notes from today's press conference with Joe Smith and Jerry Dipoto:

Joe Smith is happy to be here. His girlfriend works out here. The biggest factor for him signing with the Angels was the inclusion of a third year and the chance to play near his girlfriend.

Jerry Dipoto targeted him early and made an early offer. Other teams were interested, but the Angels were made solid offers early on that made the decision easier.

For Dipoto, getting Smith, who throws side-arm was an important factor to give the bullpen a different look. Smith throws 89-92, which Dipoto believes will pair up well with the young power arms in the pen.

Dipoto is not done. Third base and the bullpen were two areas that the Angels identified as needing improvement at the outset of Spring Training. He knows about the starting pitching, and believes that there are many days left to get the starting pitching worked out. He did not see the moves made for Freese and Smith as limiting the moves for starting pitching.

The Angels have not finalized all non-tenders yet. Expect more later today.

The Angels still expect Burnett to be fully healthy by the start of Spring Training. They will know more in January after he starts throwing.

The Angels are now focusing more on starting pitching. They do not appear to be looking to make another major improvement in the bullpen (they see Burnett as that other improvement), but will consider any opportunity to improve the club.

Smith started throwing sidearm in college at the advice of his coach at the time.

Smith really improved once they started letting him pitch complete innings. At first low risk situations, but now is capable against righties and lefties equally and in high leverage situations.

Smith sees the Angels as a perpetually contending team, and the chance to play with a team that is contending, where the expectation was to win every game was important for him.

Smith came across as a decent person. He handled himself well in the interview, gave thorough and long answers, and should play a big part in restoring the bullpen to a source of strength. 

All-in-all, I'm very happy that the Angels signed Smith. There were several other teams interested, so, I see this signing as a being well within the going market rate for a pitcher of his caliber who can generate ground balls and strikeouts, gives the bullpen a different look, and can pitch an inning in high leverage situations.

Amen.

I was literally going to sit down and write something very much the same as what Chuck wrote, but he beat me to it. His eloquence is better than mine.

Happy Thanksgiving AngelsWin.com. We all have a lot to be thankful for, and may you all have a happy holiday filled with family, friends, good food and merriment.

And, for those who are Jewish, Happy Hanukkah.

http://blogs.denverpost.com/rockies/2013/11/26/rockies-talking-with-angels-royals-looking-for-bat-bullpen-help-will-listen-to-offers-for-dexter-fowler/16047/

I am so. We hat discounting this source. Chuck said that the Rockies are target g one of our players. The whole world knows we need pitching, so they have to be prepared to move an arm or two to get what they want. I can see this taking a bit to get done as lots of people on both sides would have to sign off on he deal, especially if one of the arms is a minor Leaguer. But, this hopefully could start us off on improving the rotation.

Rockies don't want to deal pitching, we don't need Fowler... I don't think there's a match.

Looking over the Rockies stats, I see five things.

 

1) They're looking for starters too. Doesn't bode well for a contributor for 2014.

 

2) They had three underachieving 2nd baseman, but all in their mid-twenties, doubt they want Kendrick.

 

3) They don't want Iannetta as they have Wilton Rosario.

 

4) They're not parting with Tulowitski, Cuddyer, or Carlos Gonzalez unless it brings back a lot of young talent. Which the Angels don't have to offer.

 

5) Need a replacement for Helton.

 

 

So, I'd say they Angels are pushing for Chacin and Bettis for Trumbo and a minor leaguer. 

This is my thinking.

One thing Chuck said is that the Rockies are targeting one of our players. So, we're going to push hard for pitching and could be a match. One ML one and one on the doorstep would be a great haul.

Bump since tickets go on sale for season ticketholders today and to the general public on the 29th.

BTW, where the hell is Cental Okanagan?

I love stories like this.  Instantly on the radar in terms of guys I'm excited to follow. 

Doc, did you see my interview with Jonathan Van Eaton? Another great story like this. And, Van Eaton is a reliever who could move quickly in the system. Keep him on your radar too.

I'm excited to see Monster in action.

Chuck is right. I have talked with several scouts from other clubs and none of them saw Bourjos as equal to the value of a starting pitcher of the caliber that we would want/need. It's unfortunate, but, a reality. So, filling what would have been a terrible void at 3B into a serviceable solution (with a potential upside depending on the return to health) was a good use for Bourjos. I'm a bit more upset about losing Grichuk, but, I understand why an opposing GM would want him in the deal as insurance against the perceived injury status of Bourjos. 

Ettin, three things for you to consider:

1) In your analysis of the trade you didn't include the WAR from Calhoun. By trading Bourjos, we gain the value of Calhoun. Factor that into the trade and the value of the trade becomes better.

2) If we had kept Bourjos, he would not have played much, meaning that we could not have built up his trade value. We can't field a team with 4 OFers, a DH, and no 3B. The Angels would have started Calhoun over him at this point. So, the longer we waited, the less value Bourjos would have, making a trade even less likely. And, any playing time he would have would come at the expense of Calhoun, reducing his contributions to the team.

3) There is value in spreading the contributions to the team around the entire lineup, not just bunching it up in areas. That's because all players will go through slumps and streaks. By spreading the offense around, it makes it less likely that they all go through slumps and streaks at the same time. Prior to the trade, 3B would have been pretty much been a lost cause for the team. Our solutions at the time were far below replacement level. Now we are more likely to get production from that area, which will improve the team overall.

I'm not out jumping up and down calling this a great deal for the team. But, I'm not upset as a fan about it (although as I have said before, I'm more personally upset with losing two of the guys I liked the most in the organization). I recognize why it had to be done and believe we got about as much as we could for Bourjos based on what the trade market would bring. I think the team after the trade is better than the team was before the trade.