Halo Headlines: Angels in talks with Ryan Madson, Greinke certain he’ll get a record contract

The November 26th, 2012 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim including Angels in talks with Ryan Madson, Greinke certain he'll get a record contract and much more…

The Story: The Angels are said to be "hot" on free agent Ryan Madson.

The Monkey Says: They are supposedly already talking contract too, so this might get done in a hurry.  If so, it is another example of Dipoto acting quickly and decisively.  Whether or not it is a good idea remains to be seen since Madson is coming off Tommy John surgery and he may not be 100% for Opening Day.  He also could be expensive since he actually declined an $11 million option for this season to become a free agent.  He is also repped by Scott Boras, so that should be fun.  Still, if Dipoto can get him at a relative discount, he has a shot at being the much-needed additional high leverage arm they so badly need.

The Story: Zack Greinke's agents are confident that he'll get a record contract for a right-handed starter, possibly even surpassing the contract Cole Hamels recently received as well.

The Monkey Says: That is exactly what agents are supposed to say, so it really doesn't mean anything.  At this point the bidding doesn't even seem to have really started, so this is just bluster to try and get the price they want.  They might well get it, but this is still just PR.

The Story: Zack Greinke should benefit from the signing of Hiroki Kuroda.

The Monkey Says: Yep, pretty much.  Kuroda was Plan B for a lot of teams, including the Angels so having him go off the market first really puts the Halos in a bit of a bind.  The Winter Meetings are going to be a lot of fun.

The Story: Buster Olney reports that the Angels don't have many options to replace Zack Greinke because other executives think they have a thin farm system.

The Monkey Says: In related news, water is wet.  They blew their wad landing Greinke, so don't expect big trades if Zack gets away.

The Story: The Democrat and Republican off-season spending plans for the Angels.

The Monkey Says: Wait, does this mean the Angels will legalize gay marriage and marijuana too?  Either way, I vote Democrat.

The Story: The Angels step up to help youth baseball programs.

The Monkey Says: Aw, yes.  I had forgotten that in the off-season, the OC Register has Marcia Smith churn out human interest articles and fluff pieces like it is going out of style.