Halo Headlines: Kole Calhoun an extension candidate, has Mike Trout gotten slower?

The August 21st, 2014 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels including Kole Calhoun an extension candidate, has Mike Trout gotten slower and much more…

The Story: Extension candidate: Kole Calhoun.
The Monkey Says: I say nay, unless Calhoun gives them massive savings. He’s under team control through his prime, so there is no need to try and lock him up beyond that. Furthermore, the Angels’ luxury situation for the next three years is such that having Calhoun’s average annual salary be super low would be of great benefit. If he signed a five-year, $25 million deal or something, it would be about $4 million more per year on their tax bill that they otherwise wouldn’t have to deal with. At a minimum, they should wait to talk extension until he heads into his first year of arbitration.

The Story: Has Mike Trout gotten slower?
The Monkey Says: Getting slower was inevitable, but if these measurements are reliable, then he has seen his speed drop off sooner than expected. The numbers may not be totally reliable though and there could be other factors in play, but to know that he has slowed down a little bit should at least partially explained his decreased baserunning value this year. The real questions are what the reason behind the slow down is and can he gain back at least some of the speed next season?

The Story: C.J. Cron is expected to be recalled this weekend.
The Monkey Says: That would mean that either Boesch or Navarro would have to go down. I’m not sure I like this idea though. Cron hasn’t been down long enough to work on his issues and I’d honestly rather have Collin Cowgill in the lineup. Having Cron on the bench to pinch-hit would be nice, but this takes development time away for him. Why not just wait it out until rosters expand in September so that Cron can get daily at-bats?

The Story: Grant Green will begin a rehab assignment on Friday.
The Monkey Says: He’ll supposedly be back the week after that, but that would assume Green would then take over Cron’s roster spot. I think it is more likely that Green “rehabs” in Salt Lake until rosters expand.