Daily Links for the LA Angels including an interview with new scouting director Ric Wilson, Texas losing interest in Beltre, could the Angels bring back Chone Figgins and much more.
The Story: Get to know new Angel scouting director Ric Wilson.
The Monkey Says: Wilson is still a bit of an unknown quantity at this point, though it is interesting that he mentions how much he learned from the fired Eddie Bane, especially when it is widely believed that Reagins dumped Bane due to philosophical differences. It was actually believed that Reagins was looking to shift towards a more statistical based approach to the draft, but Wilson didn’t sound as if that was a major part of evaluation process.
The Story: The Rangers’ interest in Adrian Beltre appears to be waning.
The Monkey Says: This is good news for the Angels, though really not much of a surprise. Texas was rumored to be “getting aggressive” in their pursuit of Beltre earlier this week, but it hasn’t taken long for that likely Scott Boras generated rumor to dissipate. With the Rangers now falling out of the equation, it seems pretty clear that the Angels are the only remaining legitimate suitor for Beltre, unless the Athletics up their offer (which I wouldn’t hold my breath for).
The Story: Here is a crazy thought, the Angels could bring back Chone Figgins.
The Monkey Says: It actually isn’t that crazy, as I threw out the idea a few months back. Figgy would fill the third base and leadoff void for the Halos, but the problem is his contract and his inconsistent play. Chone had a rough 2010 after signing with Seattle, and he has been up and down in the past, making it risky for the Halos to take on his remaining four years and $35 million contract. The notion of trading Callaspo for him is a bad idea as it would be bailing the Mariners out of a bad investment, but I might consider it if the Halos got Seattle to take back Scott Kazmir and all of his remaining contract, thus saving the Angels about $5 million in the process. All things being equal though, I think I might still prefer Beltre over Figgins, assuming Beltre only gets a four-year pact under $60 million. This assumes that Seattle even considers Figgy a bust, which they might not… yet.
The Story: Arte Moreno’s words come back to haunt him and a certain Angel fan.
The Monkey Says: Uncle Arte made some big promises right after the 2010 season, and thus far they have not come true. True Grich’s frustrations on the topic do a fine job of speaking for just about every Angel fan right now.
The Story: The Angels help spread holiday cheer to kids.
The Monkey Says: The Halos threw their annual bash for needy kids at the ESPN Zone in Disneyland. I hear it was a great event and everyone had a good time. However, if I had known that this party was happening, I would have sent my daughter there to punch Tony Reagins in the balls for screwing up the Crawford negotiations.