The February 13th, 2015 edition of Los Angeles Angels news including Angels interested in Hector Olivera, Richards cleared to throw off mound and much more…
The Story: The Angels are showing at least some interest in Cuban 2B Hector Olivera.
The Monkey Says: Olivera is a free agent, not a prospect, so any contract he’d sign would count towards the luxury tax. That is worth noting as he’s expected to sign a contract in the range of the six-year, $72 million that Rusney Castillo got. The Halos could just manage to squeeze that under the tax line, but Olivera also has many suitors so don’t go getting too excited just yet.
The Story: Garrett Richards has been cleared to throw off a mount starting on Monday.
The Monkey Says: He’s ahead of his recovery schedule, but behind all the healthy pitchers. Still, this helps his odds for being available for Opening Day.
The Story: A look at all the new Angels that will be competing for roster spots this spring.
The Monkey Says: Ramos and Joyce pretty much have their roster spots locked up, it is just a matter of what exactly there role will be. The others, however, all legitimately have roster spots on the line.
The Story: Some of the Angels prospects on the cusp of making an impact in the majors in 2015.
The Monkey Says: Most you know, but Alex Yarbrough is on this list in a bit of a surprise. He is a solid prospect, but isn’t getting much play in the current second base competition, even though he would be the lone non-righty in the group and thus an ideal platoon option. He probably isn’t ready for the bigs right now, thus his omission from the discussion, but he could become a real option come mid-season.
The Story: ESPN SweetSpot ranks the Angels as the #8 team entering the season.
The Monkey Says: That is pretty low for a team coming off a 98-win season that basically just lost Howie Kendrick and improved at DH. I get the Dodgers, Cardinals and Nationals being above the Angels, but I’m not ready to buy into the Mariners (Schoenfield’s favorite team, btw), Indians or the Jays just yet. The Pirates look to be ranked higher too, which I really don’t get after the offseason they just had.
The Story: Another early power rankings for MLB.
The Monkey Says: This one has the Angels fifth, which is more palatable, though I don’t think the Tigers are going to be very good this year, so it isn’t perfect either.
The Story: Breaking down the chances of each division winner repeating in 2015.
The Monkey Says: Yeah, the Halos have a tough road in front of them. Even if the Mariners aren’t ready to leapfrog them, the Astros got a lot better and the Rangers should be more competitive as well. The A’s, well, who the hell knows about them, but I wouldn’t rule them out as a legit challenger.
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