The February 10th, 2012 edition of daily news for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim including Mike Trout remains on top of Law’s top 100 prospects, Bobby Abreu considered prime trade bait, Peter Bourjos could develop into the leadoff role and much more…
The Story: Mike Trout remains the #1 prospect on Keith Law’s top 100 prospect list.
The Monkey Says: Jean Segura, Garrett Richards and John Hellweg also made the list. Segura’s ranking fell, but Richards and Hellweg are both new to the list. Hellweg seems to be fast riser around the prospect ranks, so he could fly up the rankings next year if he has a big season in 2012.
The Monkey Says: I don’t think the Halos are going to make any trades until they get a feel for the health status of Mark Trumbo and Kendrys Morales, so if they do anything, it will be late in spring training. As for Abreu being the one who gets moved, I don’t buy it. I just don’t see why anyone would trade anything for Abreu when guys like Raul Ibanez, Johnny Damon, Vlad Guerrero, Derrek Lee and Hideki Matsui are all still free agents.
The Story: Peter Bourjos will be looking to develop into a leadoff hitter this season.
The Monkey Says: That would be great, but I don’t think it is necessary or optimal. Mike Trout is coming either this year or next and he already has better plate discipline than Bourjos and should be able to eclipse his OBP with ease. It certainly wouldn’t hurt for Bourjos to work on getting on base more, but he shouldn’t worry too much about where in the order he hits.
The Story: The contracts that will shape franchises beyond 2012.
The Monkey Says: You’ll never guess who is on this list! Pujols’ deal will definitely impact the Angels as it progresses, but the backloading should help them be able to smartly plan to get other big contracts off their books in the next few years and then adjust their pay structure after that.
The Story: Could Bobby Abreu be a secret weapon?
The Monkey Says: Umm… no. He isn’t. He’s just not good anymore. If anyone goes down to injury, it should be Mike Trout replacing them, not Abreu. In fact, I’d say that their is probably going to be a direct correlation between Angel losses and Abreu plate appearances in 2012.