Angels trade targets to be avoided

The Angels need to make a trade. We all know this. The repeated display of offensive ineptitude is going to make the Angels buyers on the upcoming trade market, but what exactly are they going to buy? No offense to Jerry Dipoto, but the trades he made to round out the lineup last offseason didn’t exactly pan out (glares at Matt Joyce). It isn’t entirely clear at this point who will even be on the trading block but we do know who some Angels trade targets to be avoided if/when they do become available.

Ben Revere
One school of thought for solving the Angels’ left field problem is that they should acquire a speedy leadoff hitter instead of a slugger. Revere could be that alternative, but he shouldn’t be. He’s certainly speedy, but he’s grossly miscast as a leadoff hitter. His career .322 OBP isn’t terrible, but he brings absolutely nothing else to the table on offense. With a career ISO of .051, Revere is quite possibly the least powerful hitter of his generation. He relies entirely on using his legs to generate a high BABIP, something that doesn’t always work for him and definitely may not work if he leaves the National League hitter’s park he currently calls home for the American League and the pitcher-friendly Big A. He’s also got enough of a platoon split that he wouldn’t even make Collin Cowgill entirely irrelevant and if the can’t do that, what’s the point? Besides, putting Revere in left field instead of his natural position of center field greatly reduces the scant amount of value he already provides.

Carlos Gonzalez
CarGo is the 2015 patron saint of Angels bad idea trade targets. On paper, he meets all of their criteria. He’s left-handed, athletic, has power, can hit for average, under 30 years old and doesn’t have an awful contract. At least he does on the paper from 2013. On the paper from 2015 he has lost a lot of that athleticism due to a series of injuries, he can’t hit for average anymore and his power has dropped off sharply. His contract pays him the rest of the $16 million he’s owed this year and the $37 million he’s owed through 2017. That isn’t crippling, but it isn’t worth it if he isn’t playing at an All-Star level. There’s also that whole question about how he’d actually perform once he leaves Coors Field. Considering that he’s playing awful baseball right now in Coors Field, it is probably better if the Angels weren’t the ones to find out.

Mark Trumbo
I know the return of Anaheim’s prodigal son would be met with great enthusiasm, but Trumbo simply isn’t what the Angels need. Granted, they really just need anyone who can be not terrible on offense, but they need someone who can be not terrible a little differently than Mark. His power is something the Halos need, but they really need that power from the left side of the dish. They also need someone who can provide that power without being an OBP sinkhole. They already have enough of that in the lineup already. Nostalgia is great and all, but the Angels need to be targeting bats that give the lineup better balance. Sorry, Mark, you’d help but you just wouldn’t be the exact kind of help the Angels need. We still love you though.

Allen Craig and other reclamation projects
Judging by the fact that the Angels passed on him when he was placed on waivers, there isn’t any real threat of the Halos trading for him at least not in a way that would involve taking on much of his contract. He looked like a rising superstar in 2012 and that’s all most fans remember. What they conveniently overlook is that he was an outright disaster in 2014 and continues to be in 2015. It appears he has simply been ravaged by injuries and won’t ever be the same player. The temptation to acquire him and hope that the Angels can fix him is great, but the Angels can’t afford to take those kind of chances, even if the trade doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. The same goes for other “change of scenery” type hitters like Dominic Brown, Jay Bruce or Shin-Soo Choo. The Angels need a hitter that can make an impact and make it now. They’ve already wasted enough at-bats on underperformers as it is.

Pretty much any trade for a high-end reliever
Look, I know that when the middle relief melts down, it REALLY melts down. We saw that Monday in Toronto. However, they only have 15 official meltdowns on the year and five of those belong to Huston Street and Joe Smith. The Angels bullpen has actually been pretty good this year even without having a “7th inning guy” that Scioscia can use as a crutch. With so many other holes to fill, the last thing the Angels need to do is throwing away their limited trade assets on a deal for John Axford or someone like that. Now, if they want to pick up a Jason Grilli-like reclamation project (hey there, Steve Cishek) on the cheap, I’m all for it.

Now, who exactly should the Angels trade targets be? That’s a much tougher question for a later time.