We’re over a month into the 2015 season, and as I write this, the Angels carry a 17-17 record, good for just the seventh best tally in the American League, yet somehow adequate enough for second in the AL West. To put it kindly, the first 34 games of the Halos’ season haven’t gone exactly as planned. After all, this is a team coming off a Major League-best 98 wins in 2014, returning much of the same roster.
While it’s easy to look at the bleak beginnings of this season, maybe we should remember that last year’s squad was in much a similar position at this time a year ago. The 2014 iteration of this squad had exactly the same record at the 34-game mark. Their record the rest of the way? 81-47. Now, I’m clearly not telling you to expect a .632 winning percentage over the remainder of the season, but I am suggesting that maybe it’s a little bit too early to panic.
To reach that .500 mark, the Angels leveled the Rockies (not as impressive as it sounds) in a two-game set in Anaheim. The Angels’ path to a sweep wasn’t exactly akin to mountain-top removal, but it got the job done. Most of the first game was spent in a heat between Kyle Kendrick and C.J. Wilson (you read that right), before the Halos’ so-far meager offense took advantage of the soon-to-be-stone Rafael Betancourt, tagging him for three runs in less than an inning en route to a 5-2 victory. A day after being dominated by Kendrick, the Angels’ offense struggled to mount anything of note against Rockies’ reliever Christian Bergman, who pitched 5.1 innings of one-run ball after entering the game in the second following a line drive off starter Jordan Lyles‘ arm. The Angels would eventually take the game, and the series, on some 11th-inning Albert Pujols heroics:
Albert Pujols walkoff sac fly. pic.twitter.com/Pid1HwSw8I
— Justin Russo (@FlyByKnite) May 14, 2015
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Anyways, if you would like to get more in-depth game pieces, you should check out Garrett Wilson’s Boxscore Breakdowns here and here. Here are a few takeaways from the Angels’ short sweep of the Rockies.
Stable Enigmas
As Mike Hllywa noted in detail yesterday, C.J. Wilson hasn’t been the usual sore to watch this season. In fact, he’s been quite good, as seven starts into the season, his fWAR (1.2) is good for seventh in the American League, and his ERA (2.63) ranks 12th. This was all buoyed by Tuesday’s start in which he threw eight strong innings, allowing two runs on six baserunners, while striking out six.
Likewise, Hector Santiago has been similarly impressive, outranking Wilson in ERA (2.41, seventh), and allowing one run or less in five of his seven outings. And while Santiago is gathering the same swing rate (44%) as last season, he has succeeded in lowering his contact rate (81.4%) to be more in line with his successful 2012 and 2013 campaigns with the White Sox.
The early success of Wilson and Santiago has been undoubtedly crucial for an Angels’ rotation that has dealt with mostly poor performances from Jered Weaver and Matt Shoemaker. Even with Garrett Richards looking like one of the better pitchers in baseball, the Halos are going to need stability in the middle of their rotation in order to both hold up down the stretch and succeed in October. After enigmatic 2014 seasons for the pair, it seems like they may be ready to be more than just innings-fillers.
A Personal Showcase
The Angels’ offense has been repugnant this season, with a team wRC+ of 84 that ranks 27th in baseball. Just three players in the everyday lineup carry an OPS+ above 100, or league average (Calhoun, Trout, and Giavotella). And with Josh Hamilton‘s return no longer looming on the horizon, the Angels are sorely in need of some sort of lineup help.
It just so happens that the Rockies have quite a few bats that could (and should) be available this summer.
Yes, the Angels have been listed as a potential landing spot for the probable-to-be-dealt Troy Tulowitzki, but it’s unlikely that they would be major players for him given the organization’s dearth of expendable young assets. Instead, it’s more likely that the Angels pursue one of Colorado’s outfielders such as Carlos Gonzalez or Charlie Blackmon.
Gonzalez was disastrous in his series in Anaheim, combining to go 1-for-9 with four strikeouts, and his overall performance this season hasn’t been much better. The 29-year old two-time All-Star is hitting just .188/.245/.297 with a 42 OPS+ this year, after missing much of last season, and disappointing (89 OPS+) when he did play. Gonzalez is also making $16 million this season, and is due a total of $36 million more in 2016 and 2017. So, why target him? Pedigree.
As bad as Gonzalez’s recent performance has been, he is still in what should be his prime years and was an elite offensive weapon as recently as 2013. His salary and performance would likely make this a difficult acquisition for the Angels, but he likely wouldn’t cost much in terms of talent, and there is demonstrated upside.
The far better option would be Blackmon, who surprised many by earning a bid to the All-Star game last year (although it may have been undeserved), and ending the season with a .288/.335/.440 line to go along with 28 steals, a 2.0 WAR, and 100 wRC+. The 28-year old Blackmon has turned it up even more this season, as he is currently hitting for a 117 wRC+ with a 0.9 WAR. Colorado also has some incentive to trade him now, as he will be arbitration eligible for the first time following the season, and the Rockies have a pair of elite outfield prospects in David Dahl and Raimel Tapia who are blazing through the minors.
Personally, I believe the Angels should at least look into the possibility of dealing for Justin Morneau. For a team that is in win-now mode, Morneau is a strong fit, as he is quite productive for his age (34), coming off a season in which he hit .319/.364/.496, winning the NL batting title. Even adjusting for Coors Field’s offensive inflation, he still posted a 126 OPS+ last season. Morneau, who went 3-for-8 in the series, is also making just $6.75 million this season, with a $9 million mutual option for next year. If Morneau finishes the year with adequate numbers, it seems likely that he would decline that option in order to potentially land one last multi-year deal. That would essentially make him a half-year rental, meaning the Angels would have to give up very little to get him.
As for where he would fit, it’s unlikely that Morneau would unseat Albert Pujols at first base given that the latter is the superior defender. However, he would be a clear solution at designated hitter, which has been a hot mess for the Angels this season, as the club’s DH’s have combined to hit for a last-place 39 wRC+. C.J. Cron has been the main culprit for those issues, and while he showed promise last season, the Angels would probably have no problem relegating him to the bench or minors if it meant a better shot at the postseason. Cementing Morneau at DH would also free up Matt Joyce and Collin Cowgill to form a full-time platoon in left field.
Why not give it a shot?
Stretching the Street
In the midst of his extension, Huston Street pitched brilliantly in both games against Colorado, combining for a pair of shutout innings in which he struck out three batters and walked none. Monkey with a Halo will have something more thoughtful up on the subject sometime soon, but for now, here’s my take on the Street extension.
As Garrett stated, this is a very reasonable deal for both sides. Street gets some sense of financial security in a volatile relief market, and the Angels lock up one of the brighter ninth-inning options in the game for a sum much less than the originally demanded contract in the range of what Andrew Miller or David Robertson received ($36 and $46 million respectively). The deal essentially guarantees Street just half of that, giving him $17 million in salary, with an additional $1 million guaranteed through a buyout to his $10 million club option for 2018. If that 2018 option is picked up (which would seemingly only occur if Street has met the value of his contract to date), the deal would be cumulatively worth $27 million. So, he would receive the same AAV as Miller ($9 million), but the time commitment is minimal, and that is a clear victory with Street soon to be 32 and 11 big league seasons under his belt. It really just wouldn’t have made sense for Dipoto and company to give Street a lengthy contract.
Also working in the Angels’ favor is the matter that Street has never been reliant on blazing velocity, as his fastball has sat in the upper-80’s for a number of years now. As far as we know, this should (and has) benefited him in some way to keeping his arm off the operating table.
Still, the Angels are taking on a considerable amount of risk given that he still has to finish this season before the actual extension kicks in. Street has pitched well so far this season, but he hasn’t been the same lights-out guy that he was last year. Of course, it’s probably not reasonable to expect him to repeat 2014, but as long as he’s healthy, the Angels should have little worries as to who’s leading the ‘pen.
And Mike Trout… He’s Alright
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