Yesterday, we looked at what the Angels need this offseason. That’s great. Now we just need to figure out how to fill those needs. Fortunately, I’ve got just the blog post for that. It is almost like I planned it that way or something. Weird, right? Anyway, let’s start scouring this pisspoor free agent market to see if there is anything that can help.
STARTING PITCHERS
Thanks to injuries and poor performance the Angels need starting pitching depth for the, let me count, 53rd season in a row. They could grab just one, they could pick up as many as three. Nothing is off the table
Jon Lester, Max Scherzer and James Shields – OK, I lied. Some things are off the table. These are the three big arms that everyone is going to want the Halos to sign, but it isn’t going to happen. I’m sure they’ll kick the tires, just in case, but so long as Arte Moreno vows not to pay the luxury tax, they can’t afford any of these guys.
Jason Hammel, Francisco Liriano, Brandon McCarthy, Jake Peavy and Ervin Santana – Now these are more realistic targets. These guys won’t come cheap, but they should come at a price that the Angels can make work under the luxury tax with a few other moves on the side to clear a little salary. The Halos showed interest in Hammel last season, so there is known interest there. There is obviously history with Ervin Santana as well, but the rest is just mere speculation.
Justin Masterson and Colby Lewis – If the Angels want to try and grab a quality starter but without paying the sticker price, Masterson and Lewis could be the value deals on the market. Both are coming off of rough seasons and willing to take a discount on a short-term deal so that they can try and rebuild value. Lewis is a longshot as appears to be pre-ordained that he’ll stay with the rangers. Masterson, however, washed out in St. Louis, so he is a very strong option. When he’s good, Masterson looks like a borderline ace, but when he’s bad, like was last year, he’s really, really bad.
Chris Capuano, Gavin Floyd and Roberto Hernandez – These are the representative class of the flotsam and jetsam of the market. Their only real qualifications are that they are veterans who will probably sign for very little or maybe even a minor league contract. More such pitchers should be hitting the market later in the winter once all the non-tenders happen. Jerry Dipoto figures to be quite active in this part of the market as he looks for guys to strictly serve as depth and insurance against Garrett Richards missing more time than expected.
Mark Buehrle, Bartolo Colon, Mat Latos, Yovani Gallardo and Ian Kennedy – A trade is a very possible, if not more likely, route for the Angels to take. By making a trade, the Angels have an opportunity to acquire a more talented pitcher without having to take on as much money. All they need to do is overpay a bit in terms of prospects or deal someone off their big league roster and they can get the other team to eat some of the money involved. The trade market isn’t exactly clear right now, but the players listed are guys either expected to hit the market (Latos and Buehrle) or guys the Angels at least poked around at back at the deadline.
LEFTY RELIEVERS
The Angels need a left-handed reliever, everyone says so. They were fine without one last season, but there are platoon match-ups that need to be exploited, dammit! Surely filling this role can’t be that hard, right?
Andrew Miller – Miller gets his own category because he’s clearly the cream of the crop. He’s a left-handed reliever who is death on left-handed batters, but he’s also death on righties. He’s just really dang good. He will be quite expensive, mind you, but he’s the sort of arm that could be a devastating bullpen weapon. I just doubt the Angels are going to pour even more money into an already expensive and highly productive bullpen.
Zach Duke and Tom Gorzelanny – If they want to make a smaller investment on quality lefties, these two are the way to go. They aren’t in the same class as Miller, but they were both excellent last year and capable of at least not getting pummeled by righties.
Phil Coke, Neal Cotts and Joe Thatcher – If you really just want a LOOGY, these are the more proven guys who shouldn’t cost too much. None of them were great last season, but reliever performance is always erratic, so a marginal investment in any of these three could produce big results. It could also produce poor results, but won’t cost enough for anyone to care.
Joe Beimel, Craig Breslow and Scott Downs – If you want super cheap LOOGYs, these are the veteran “have left arm, will travel” options. The Angels actually asked the Red Sox about Breslow at the trade deadline, so there could already be interest there. These are the sort of guys that Dipoto would likely only sign to a minor league deal with a spring training invite so that he doesn’t use up a roster spot on them.
Unspecified trade or non-tender player – This gets its own category here because I consider it the most likely possibility. Not the non-tenders so much, but rather trading for a lefty arm. Specifically, I think the front office might target a left-handed relief prospect should they decide to move Kendrick or Freese. A high-end left-handed relief prospect is nowhere to be found in their system and at some point the Halos need to start integrating more cheap talent into the pitching staff.
DESIGNATED HITTERS
The Angels have a need to upgrade both their DH position and their bench. They have an opportunity to do both in one fell swoop by signing a potent left-handed bat. This can be someone who either platoons at DH, so as not to block C.J. Cron‘s development, or just serve as bench depth.
Mike Carp, Ryan Doumit and Kendrys Morales – These three are the best (and I use that word very loosely) DH options in the Angels price range. All three of them are only in their price range because they are coming off bad 2014 campaigns. None of them offer much in the way of defensive value, so there is limitations in pursuing them, but all three should at least be considered as possible platoon partners for Cron. This list will assuredly grow once the non-tender deadline hits.
Nate Schierholtz and Grady Sizemore – If the Angels want a lefty bat that actually can provide defensive value, these two are the best (again, used loosley) options. Neither of them are particularly attractive. Schierholtz had a very nice 2013 but fell off a cliff in 2014. Sizemore wasn’t particularly good in 2014, but he has that brand name recognition that gives a sliver of hope that he might have a breakout season in him. Hopefully this section of the list will grow once the non-tender deadline rolls around. (Yes, this is a recurring theme. This free agent market is garbage from top to bottom.)
David DeJesus, Andre Ethier, Matt Joyce and Adam Lind– Once again, the trade route looks like the best option. The Rays seem ripe for the picking now that they enter the post-Price, post-Friedman eras. They’ll probably be looking to shave payroll and that could work out well for the Angels if they are able to nab DeJesus or Joyce to serve as a part-time DH and reserve outfielder. I include Andre Ethier hear as well since his days with the Dodgers appears to be numbered. He’s at a point where the Dodgers will have no choice but to eat most of his contract, so he could be fairly cheap for the Angels to acquire and try to fix. Lind has the most offensive potential out of the entire group and won’t be too expensive, at least in terms of salary.
BENCH PLAYERS
The Angels need bench help in general, as mentioned above. One of the open roles they need to fill is that of a utility infielder. They basically burnt that role on John McDonald and his vaunted clubhouse presence last season, but it seems that they intend to actually get real value from the role this year. What form that value takes remains to be seen.
Emilio Bonifacio – If the Angels want to follow the Royals model and utilize a bench spot on someone that can race around the bases, Bonifacio is their man. His bat is highly questionable, but he is a legit speed demon who can play almost anywhere on the diamond. It is very easy to see him pinch-running for David Freese late in close games and then taking over as a defensive replacement.
Alberto Callaspo and Kelly Johnson – If the Angels are willing to roll the dice and add an infielder who can’t really play shortstop, Callaspo or Johnson could be options as they offer a bit more offensive potential. Neither is going to be all that cheap though, so they’d almost certainly be better off just keeping Gordon Beckham who actually can fake it at short.
Clint Barmes and Ramon Santiago – If the Angels want to go back to the McDonald mold of back-up infielders, Barmes and Santiago are both very capable defenders with good leadership chops. Neither can do much else, but they still probably have more offensive value than Johnny Mac. Mostly though, I’d expect the Angels to consider younger non-tender guys and Quad-A types if they decide to go this route. They don’t have a lot of money to spend, so burning it on a no-bat veteran glove doesn’t make much sense.
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