Los Angeles Angels
2013: 78-84, 3rd in AL West
Last season: Hitting = good, pitching = bad. That was the story all year for the other Los Angeles team. The Angels finished in the top 7 in the MLB in runs scored, batting average, OBP, and slugging percentage, but were still outscored 737-733 over the course of the year. They can blame their pitching staff for that one, coming in with a 4.23 ERA on the year, 24th in the majors. They missed the playoffs for the 4th straight season after two off-seasons of huge spending. Albert “I’m no machine, I’m just Albert” Pujols played just over half of the season, while Jered Weaver missed time as well. CJ Wilson looked more like Texas CJ Wilson in 2013 than the first-year Angels Wilson, going 17-7 with a 3.39 ERA in 33 starts, throwing over 200 innings for the 4th straight year. Mike Trout was a bright spot, hitting even better than he did his rookie season to the tune of .323/.432/.557, while playing in 157 games. With their injuries and inconsistent pitching, they were able to make some deals and discover young prospects who produced from their system later in the year. Those same guys will look to make a big impact in 2014, and the guys who have been there look to improve on their play as well as have bounce back seasons.
The off-season brought a late-November trade for David Freese from the Cardinals, sending OF Peter Bourjos and OF prospect Randal Grichuk (drafter one spot ahead of Mike Trout) to STL for Freese and P Fernando Salas. Raul Ibanez agreed to a one-year deal in December to essentially be the DH after Mark Trumbo was traded to the D-Backs for Tyler Skaggs and Hector Santiago in a three-team deal. The Angels brought in bullpen help, which they badly needed, with the signing of RHP Joe Smith to a 3-year deal, although many said they overpaid in the nearly $16 million they’ll pay to him over the life of that contract.
This season the rotation looks to rebound from an awful season last year, looking to build on its 24th place ERA in the majors. I would expect the hitting to be fairly similar to what they produced last season, almost in the top 5 of all major offensive categories. The problem was and will continue to be pitching, as the depth of their staff is not Oakland A’s-like. Their starting 5 looks to be Weaver, Wilson, Garrett Richards, Tyler Skaggs, and Hector Santiago. Beyond the first two who have been solid contributors, the other three have been and could be inconsistent. The outfield will be Trout, Josh Hamilton, and Kole Calhoun, being joined by Pujols, Howie Kendrick, Freese, and Erick Aybar around the horn, with Chris Iannetta behind the plate. Overall, they should be not bad on defense, and pretty good at the plate, but the pitching and depth will be the issue for these 2014 LA Angels.
Predictions: Well the Angels hit their way to 78 wins last year, if the pitching picks up
even a little bit, they should be in the thick of the wild card race. I like them to finish 2nd in the division and play in the wild card game. Mike Trout will have his usual MVP-caliber season and could finally take home the award, but we’ll see what a certain Tiger has to say about that.
@DKnappyBoy
North Bound Sports Report 