The February 22nd, 2012 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim including Bobby Abreu wants a starting job or a trade, Kendrys Morales is unlikely to be ready for the spring opener, Chris Iannetta is not worried about leaving Coors Field and much more…
The Story: Bobby Abreu tells the Angels “play me or trade me.”
The Monkey Says: So much for Scioscia reaching out to him and Bobby agreeing to play the loyal soldier. Seeing your career come to an end is hard for anyone to handle, but he is horribly misguided here. He obviously isn’t going to get an everyday job in Anaheim and would probably be lucky to make three starts per week. But since he can’t handle the field on an everyday basis anymore, he is only going to find a full-time starting job in the AL. Alas, the only two teams that have anything resembling an opening at DH are the Orioles and maybe the Tigers. In both cases, the teams might find they are better off signing Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, Derrek Lee or Vladimir Guerrero for a nominal amount rather than giving up a middling prospect in exchange for Abreu. The real problem though is that the Angels probably want to move him but can’t just cast him aside until they know for sure that both Kendrys Morales and Mark Trumbo will be healthy enough to play. Expect a lot of rumors (mostly baseless ones) to follow Abreu throughout the spring.
The Story: Kendrys Morales most likely will not be ready to play in the Angels’ spring opener.
The Monkey Says: The quotes about Morales continue to sound more and more optimistic. That they are even talking about him being ready to play in exhibition games is a major step forward compared to this time last year.
The Story: Chris Iannetta is not worried about no longer playing his home games at Coors Field.
The Monkey Says: He actually sounds quite eager to prove that he can hit without having an assist from that altitude. More importantly, he is already readying himself for Scioscia by studying up on his impending defensive responsibilities.
The Story: A look at how Bobby Abreu’s power has vanished.
The Monkey Says: Fewer hard hit balls and significantly more balls hit to the opposite field. It is almost as if he is getting older and losing his bat speed or something. Fancy that.
The Story: LaTroy Hawkins finds fun and joy in having now played for nine different teams in ten years.
The Monkey Says: I think it is pretty safe to say that Hawk is going to be a pretty positive influence in the clubhouse.
The Story: Jorge Cantu enters training camp facing a career crossroads.
The Monkey Says: I don’t remember Cantu ever getting MVP votes (he finished 27th in voting in 2005), but that seems more like a local beat writer throwing him a loyalty vote. Jorge is a longshot to make the Angels big league roster this year.
The Story: Jordan Walden was encouraged by the Angels not adding competition at closer.
The Monkey Says: If not adding a veteran fallback option at closer works to make Walden better at his job, then it was the right move. However, if Jordan struggles with consistency and conditioning again, then they are going to have to scramble at mid-season to bring someone in via trade.
The Story: For C.J. Wilson, the start of baseball offers him a break from his busy schedule.
The Monkey Says: You could just give up one (or seven) of your hobbies, C.J..
The Story: Albert Pujols has already bumped into Yu Darvish a few times.
The Monkey Says: Talk about a small world. The two may have had a pleasant encounter off the field, but I suspect when they meet up on the field, Darvish won’t come away feeling so friendly anymore.
The Story: What kind of leader is Albert Pujols going to be?
The Monkey Says: So, he is going to lead by example like Vlad, but be much more vocal and also be a true hard-working grinder like Darin Erstad. With leadership credentials like that, he just needs a little bit more charisma and he might have a career in politics.
The Story: Baseball America has released their top 100 prospects list with Mike Trout at third.
The Monkey Says: I’ve linked to so many of these lists in the last few weeks that they are all blending together, but BA is highly respected, so give it a gander.