The March 30th, 2015 edition of Los Angeles Angels news including Angels to use four-man rotation, Lindstrom released and much more…
The Story: The Angels are likely to start the season with a four-man rotation.
The Monkey Says: Heaney and Tropeano both sort of fell on their face this spring, so the team is going to send them both to the minors. They can get into mid-April without a fifth starter, so they will carry eight relievers instead and likely just use Rucinski or Alvarez to make one spot start before Richards slots back into the mix. This is a disappointing development for the Halos as they had been hoping for Heaney to contribute, but it also isn’t the worst thing in the world.
The Story: The Angels released Matt Lindstrom.
The Monkey Says: He was a bit shocked by it, but he shouldn’t have been. He didn’t pitch well in the last week and the Angels prefer roster flexibility. He’ll try and catch on elsewhere now. As a result of Lindstrom’s release, Vinnie Pestano is now a virtual lock to make the roster.
The Story: Despite another strong start, the Angels won’t rush back Garrett Richards.
The Monkey Says: They want to see him throw 100 pitches in a game first and he’s only at 70 right now. It might be tempting to just have him come off the DL the day he is eligible, but the Angels are committed to being cautious with him.
The Story: Some Angels players are worried that Josh Hamilton could become a distraction when he returns.
The Monkey Says: This isn’t a media-created narrative, these comments come straight from the players themselves. It really makes you wonder what the Angels will do with Hamilton if he gets a very long suspension. If he gets 100+ games, they might very well just choose to write him off. Shorter than that though, they might feel like they need to at least pretend like they are supporting him and let him come back for at least a portion of the season before cutting bait. Whatever the case, it is highly doubtful Josh Hamilton will be on the Angels roster on Opening Day of 2016.
The Story: The Angels removed banners featuring Josh Hamilton and C.J. Wilson from the front of Angel Stadium.
The Monkey Says: Removing Hamilton makes sense, obviously. The Wilson removal is also understandable, but probably is going to make for an awkward meeting the next time C.J. runs into Eric Kay.
The Story: Johnny Giavotella looks to be in good shape to win the second base job.
The Monkey Says: Dipoto likes his minor league numbers but also likes that he has a strong work ethic and can potentially be an energy player on the roster.
The Story: Efren Navarro is swinging a hot bat and pushing for a roster spot.
The Monkey Says: He might well get it. His defense makes him more versatile and the fact that Cron may not be platooned for means that a more traditional bench player fits the roster. If Matt Joyce is still having leg issues when the season starts, that only makes it even more likely that Navarro gets the last roster spot.
The Story: SI.com previews the Angels 2015 season.
The Monkey Says: They’ve got them down for 92 wins, but second in the AL West because of this crazy notion that the Mariners are somehow a juggernaut now.
The Story: Roberto Baldoquin brings promise to the Angels.
The Monkey Says: This piece is actually more about his backstory, in case you wanted to get to know him a bit better.
The Story: Team value according to media exposure.
The Monkey Says: The Angels rank tenth. They were getting a lot of exposure, but other than Trout, most of the exposure hasn’t been real positive of late. Also, this valuation is utter bullpuckey.
The Story: Fangraphs released their positional power rankings for center field.
The Monkey Says: Guess who finished first.
The Story: Fangraphs released their positional power rankings for designated hitter.
The Monkey Says: Guess who finished twelfth.
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