Part 1:
Angels are slippin. Free Agent ace Jon Garland is on his way to the D-Backs and that halo rotation is looking just a hair less dominant. Single-season saves leader K-Rod is paid in Queens, and will no longer prey on the A's in the ninth. Bad Vlad posted modest numbers in 2008, Tori Hunter is looking every bit his 34 years, and Garret Anderson may be unemployed by the start of spring training. The sting still lingers from Mark Texieira's snub of their 160MM, 8 year offer. And, to top it all off... the city of Anaheim brought legal action against the club for rights to their name. They gave it up eventually, but they had a point. The Angels are, after all, located in Orange County. All of a sudden, the big red 100 game win machine is sputtering.
The division rivals to the south have held a tradition of fielding strong teams for most of this decade. Much of their success has been predicated on a strong core of hitters, and supported by a diverse, powerful pitching staff. But as 2009 takes shape, the house Scioscia built is showing some cracks in the foundation. This is not, however, reason to relax.
Ervin Santana, Joe Saunders, and Jon Lackey are all returning to the rotation, and they won 45 games for the Angels in 2008. That's a pretty solid core, but they will miss Garland. They also signed closer Brian Fuentes (and his career 3.41 ERA) to a 2 year, $18MM deal in hopes he will be able to ice hitters the same way K-Rod did last season. Good luck with that fellas.
GM Tony Reagins inexplicably moved on free agent Juan Rivera while ignoring Manny Rodriguez (who is still available). This one puzzles me a bit, as they were willing to commit 8 years and countless millions to Mark Texieira, but not 3 or 4 years to Manny, with a career .314 average and a reputation as one of the most feared hitters in the game. He would also offer legit star-power (aka butts in seats, aka enhanced revenues). Oh well. Maybe they see Erick Aybar hitting 37 homers this year at the SS position.
The arbitration class was also quite active, although easily resolved, and focused mainly on position players. Chone Figgins, Robb Quinlan, Jack Taschner, Derren Oliver, Brad Thompson and Mike Napoli all came to terms with the Angels and avoided arbitration hearings; collectively a good omen for Anaheim. Whether or not retention of those players will be enough to win the Division remains to be seen.
Trade-wise, nothing to report.
All in all, The Angels are looking far less ferocious than the 2008 squad who earned the AL's best record (and ultimately choked to Boston). The market is what it is, and they did not emerge as winners this offseason. Which is a bit disappointing to Angel fans, I can imagine, considering their $115MM payroll and gigantic (and painfully, horribly garish) new Orange County stadium.
So. Where does that leave Oakland? Poised. At the very least, in contention. The A's young and relatively unproven starting rotation is seeking leadership from 2 time all star Justin Durscherer. If he can stay healthy, he could prove a viable steady and Ace... but that composure will have to be contagious to the rest of the young arms. Pitching will be our greatest concession to the Angels, despite their losses.
Our offense will now feature 2 former batting champs and a former MVP (yeah, he's old, but he still hit 34 homers last year). Chavez is healthy. Ellis is healthy. Travis Buck is healthy and ready to join the ranks of Oakland's proven hitters. This is good news for the A's, who boasted a League worst offense last season. This is bad news for the Angels, who are used to abusing our near-anemic lineup. Long story short, we are going to hit the ball much better against Anaheim this year. I do not see 100 wins as being a realistic accomplishment for them. Watch out California Angels... I mean LA Angels... I mean Anaheim Angels... I mean LA Angels of Anaheim. Pretty sure that's it.
Anaheim's own disneyland...
next installment: Seattle Mariners.
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