Daily Links for the LA Angels including Halos still looking for leadoff options, a plea to sign Rafael Soriano, Spring Training tickets go on sale Satruday and much more…
The Story: The Angels are still looking for a spark at the top of the order.
The Monkey Says: One thing Scioscia has been relatively open about is how displeased he is with the in-house leadoff options for the team. Sosh mentions a need for someone who can get on base and make things happen, but there is a real dearth of those kind of players available right now. However, it sounds like the Halos would be looking more at someone like Scott Podsednik than Johnny Damon.
The Story: A friendly reminder to Tony Reagins that Rafael Soriano is still available.
The Monkey Says: I like the idea of adding MFIKY, but with a likely $10 million pricetag, it means the Angels would likely have to shed the salary of either Mike Napoli or, more likely, Juan Rivera to stay on budget after a Soriano signing. My problem with that is if the Angels don’t sign any offensive help, they would be thinning out an already wafer-thin crop of hitters.
The Story: Angel Spring Training tickets go on sale this Saturday.
The Monkey Says: If you can, definitely go to Spring Training as it can really be a lot of fun. I also highly recommend buying tickets in advance as they sell out a lot faster than you would think.
The Story: The Angels are chief amongst suitors for Scott Podsednik.
The Monkey Says: I suspect the Angels could have him if they wanted him (a rarity for them these days) as they are the only team that could offer him a starting spot in the outfield.
The Story: The Rangers are now pursuing Jim Thome.
The Monkey Says: That is unfortunate to hear. I don’t really see Thome as a great fit in Texas since it seems like they need a righty to platoon at either first or with Daniel Murphy in the outfield, but Thome has tons of power and is actually someone I think the Angels should go hard after. I very much like the idea of a Napoli/Thome platoon at designated hitter for the Angels.
The Story: The Halos now boast a top 10 farm system.
The Monkey Says: This is only going to support the case of those who want the Angels to abandon ship and start rebuilding, especially since much of their top talent is still at least a year or two away from reaching the majors.
The Story: Sam Miller presents his top 20 Angel prospects.
The Monkey Says: If the argument in the last link didn’t convince you, seeing how deep this top 20 is should definitely convince you that the Angels have a very bright future. Unfortunately, most of the players on the list are going to be playing at Double-A or lower.
The Story: Ten questions with prospect Tyler Chatwood.
The Monkey Says: Nothing ground-breaking here, but hey, the kid sounds nice enough.