The January 6th, 2014 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels including Angels should pay the luxury tax in 2014, Mike Trout an extension candidate and much more…
The Story: The Angels would be better off just paying the luxury tax in 2014 than working to avoid it.
The Monkey Says: As Rosenthal so astutely pointed out in his piece, I have been saying this all along. The damage this season would be minimal and, though it won't be easy, they'll have enough flexibility to get under the tax line in 2015 to avoid the harsher repeat offender penalty.
The Story: Mike Trout is the Angels' only real team-controlled player that is a consideration for an extension.
The Monkey Says: And they should extend him before the season to bring his tax number down by a few million to help with the aforementioned goal of avoiding the tax in 2015. They could save a lot more by not giving him an extension at all, but that route is obviously fraught with peril.
The Monkey Says: There is no incentive to dump him immediately. The smart move is holding onto him right up until the season starts in case of injury to another pitcher. If everyone is healthy and effective, they can hopefully find a team desperate for an arm after being hit by injuries themselves and get that team to pick up a chunk of his salary via trade. I still think it is more likely that he gets released though.
The Story: A look at other pitchers who have attempted comebacks like the one Mark Mulder is attempting.
The Monkey Says: The sample shows the numbers for those who actually earned a spot in the majors. What it doesn't show is how many guys tried to come back after years away from the game and never made it out of training camp. Surely there are some, none come to mind, but that is sort of the point, isn't it?
The Story: The most overlooked Hall of Fame candidate at every position.
The Monkey Says: Bobby Grich should be in the Hall of Fame of guys known for not getting into the Hall of Fame. This position is his to own for a long time… assuming the voters finally wise up and put Craig Biggio in the Hall.
The Story: Predicting an AL MVP for Mike Trout and 30+ homer seasons for both Pujols and Hamilton.
The Monkey Says: I would be money on one of those three coming true. I'd at least think about betting on two of the three, but I have a hard time believing enough will go right for the Halos for all three predictions to come true.
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