Daily Links for the LA Angels including trying to find a mystery team for Beltre, Angels still interested in Damon and Podsednik, the Halos made an offer for Jacoby Ellsbury and much more…
The Story: Looking for a mystery team for Adrian Beltre.
The Monkey Says: Sam gives it the graphical treatment which shows the Angels as the clear pairing for Beltre with the A’s, Rangers and Twins as distant potential fallback options for Beltre. I don’t know if Boras is ever going to find his mystery team, but it sure would be nice if he would hurry up either way.
The Story: The Angels have shown interest in Johnny Damon and Scott Podsednik.
The Monkey Says: This is something we already knew or assumed, but it is interesting to see it get further confirmation. The connection to Podsednik is relatively new, but it makes about as much sense as Damon. I’m not wild about either player (especially Pods), but at least Tony Reagins is still out there kicking tires while he waits on Beltre. And, yes, everything the Halos are working on is on hold until Beltre makes a decision because it will greatly influence what other subsequent moves the Angels might look to make (i.e. getting a power-hitting left fielder rather than a leadoff-type).
The Story: Damon and Podsednik are not much of an answer for the Angels.
The Monkey Says: I’m pretty sure I just said all of that. However, given what is available on the market, those really are the Angels’ best free agent options, so you can’t blame them for showing interest.
The Story: The Boston Globe’s John Cafardo says the Angels did make an offer for Jacoby Ellsbury.
The Monkey Says: A lot of people suspected as much, but this is the first time anyone has said it happened. Ellsbury would be a great fit for the Halos, but it sounds like the BoSox aren’t all that interested in moving him anymore. Cafardo also claims that Rafael Soriano heading to the Angels makes the most sense to him (not that anyone asked that Masshole), which some may disagree with. I happen to agree, but I’ve got a very intriguing reason why, so check back in later today.
The Story: Bobby Abreu is a year-round angel to many.
The Monkey Says: Abreu should be lauded for his charitable giving, but if his 2011 season is anything like his 2010 season, the Angels might want ot ask him to give back some of his salary.
The Story: The Rangers have reportedly agreed to terms with Brandon Webb.
The Monkey Says: The former Cy Young winner is little more than a reclamation project at this point, but he does have the potential to be very good and his groundball tendencies would certainly help him in the hitter-friendly Ballpark in Arlington. Nonetheless, Angel fans should be glad that this is the best that Texas could do when it comes to replacing Cliff Lee. However, they should still have a healthy chunk of cash left to spend, so they may not be done yet.
The Story: Defending Arte Moreno.
The Monkey Says: This is a great defense against those slamming Moreno for being cheap. However, what it doesn’t cover is whether or not Arte has the intestinal fortitude to back his team in making big ticket moves like he failed to do in signing Carl Crawford. Not signing Crawford was more of a special kind of cheapness, a cheapness of principle rather than of financial resources and that is what concerns folks like me.