Tagged: Baseball
10 Things I’m Watching In 2015: American League West
As we count down to Spring Training, here’s the sixth installment of my ’10 Things I’m Watching In 2015′ series. Today’s topic: the American League West.
Ultimately the Angels ran away with the AL West in 2014, but things could be very different this time around. Yes, the Angels have another great squad, but several AL West teams made big moves over the off season and it looks as if this may be the best division in baseball. The NL Central will rival the AL West for that title, but either way the race out West will be fun to watch and will likely come down to the season’s final days.
Angels:
After posting a 98 win season in 2014, it was not all that surprising that the Angels didn’t go out and completely retool their roster over the off season. The Angels 2015 lineup will look a lot like the one that ended the 2014 season.
A healthy Garrett Richards will be a welcomed face to the rotation, but it also looks like the Angels may start the season without Josh Hamilton.
Although the Angels didn’t make a ton of big moves over the off season, the team did trade Howie Kendrick to the Dodgers, so second base will be a position to watch both offensively and defensively.
A’s:
The A’s got off to a strong start last season and looked like they would easily win the division, but ultimately struggled down the stretch.The late season collapse was followed by a whirlwind of an off season and now the 2015 season will begin with an Oakland roster that hardly resembles that of 2014.
Across the infield the A’s began 2014 with Brandon Moss, Eric Sogard, Jed Lowrie and Josh Donaldson, but this season the projected Opening Day lineup consists of Ike Davis, Ben Zobrist, Marcus Semien and Brett Lawrie, with Billy Butler at DH.
Billy Beane completely changed the makeup of the team over the off season, but the A’s have been to the playoffs in three consecutive seasons so it’s hard to count them out.
Also, it’s important to note that the Athletics will once again feature a strong pitching staff – a fact that will keep them in a lot of games.
Despite losing Jon Lester (not that anyone thought he’d resign or stay in Oakland) and trading away Jeff Samardzija, the A’s will still have a rotation that consists of Sonny Gray, Scott Kazmir, Jesse Chavez, Jesse Hahn and Drew Pomeranz.
Oakland’s rotation may be impressive, but it might not even be the best in the division.
Mariners: With arguably the best pitcher in the American League in Felix Hernandez, it’s quite possible the Mariners have the best rotation as well. Hernandez and Hisashi Iwakuma are a nasty 1-2 punch and will win the Mariners in a lot of games.
While the pitching was there last season, Seattle often struggled to score runs in 2014 – a problem the teams hopes will be solved with the addition of Nelson Cruz.
Cruz hit 40 home runs a season ago and will make the top of the Mariners line-up, along with Austin Jackson and Robinson Cano, a lot more potent than it was just a season ago.
Astros: Just as the A’s made several changes, so did the Astros. The 2015 Astros will look a lot different than the 2014 version – including new manager A.J. Hinch – and appear to be in a much better position to compete.
To bolster the offense, the Astros added Evan Gattis, but most of the reshuffling happened in the bullpen as the Astros added Luke Gregerson and Pat Neshek.
Gregerson and Neshek – both right-handers – are coming off some of the best seasons in their careers. Gregorson posted a career-best 2.12 ERA last season while Neshek posted a 1.87 ERA and was selected to his first All Star game.
Jed Lowrie will also be a nice addition to the middle of the infield as he returns to Houston after a productive two seasons in Oakland.
Rangers: Every team deal with injuries, but the amount the Rangers faced last season was crazy.
First and foremost Rangers fans have to be excited about starting 2015 with a healthy Prince Fielder. That fact alone should be a boost to the offense, but regaining Fielder is not the only significant move the Rangers have made.
Late in the off season the Rangers made perhaps their most significant off season move when they traded for Yovani Gallardo.
Gallardo figured to fit into the middle of the Rangers rotation and has started 30 or more games in six straight seasons – a good sign for a team that has struggled with injures and had a hard time keeping players on the field.
Previous Entries:
10 Things I’m Watching In 2015: Boston Red Sox
As we count down to Spring Training, here’s the fifth installment of my ’10 Things I’m Watching In 2015′ series. Today’s topic: the Boston Red Sox.
In the middle of January, MLB Network Radio asked Pablo Sandoval if the Red Sox would win the AL East in 2015. His answer, “we will.”
While Sandoval, who signed a five-year $95 million contract with the Red Sox, is confident, can the team really go from worst to first this season?
Although Boston was unable to resign Lester, General Manager Ben Cherington made some big moves this off season and made it clear the Red Sox are looking to compete.
In addition to adding Sandoval, the Red Sox added Hanley Ramirez to a line-up that already features David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia.
Boston also fixed up the pitching staff, adding Wade Miley, Rick Porcello and Justin Masterson. None of those names are going to have experts listing the Red Sox among the game’s top rotations, but it’s not a bad staff either.
The Red Sox scored 634 runs last season – which tied for 11th in the American League. Needless to say the club is hoping to improve on those numbers and if Sandoval and Ramirez hit like they’re capable of, then the Boston line-up should be more potent.
Going from worst to first in one season is not an easy task, but Boston has done it before and there are several players on that team that know how to win – something that is very important when looking for a major turnaround.
Recap of previous entries:
Manfred’s open mindedness can only mean good things
Rob Manfred has been the commissioner of baseball for less than a month so it’s unfair and unrealistic to dish out early grades or talk about the job he’s done. Manfred only began his tenure on January on 26, but there have already been plenty of headlines.
Will new rules be enforced to speed up the pace of games?
Will defensive shifts be eliminated?
Will the strike zone change?
Will Pete Rose’s lifetime ban be lifted?
The answers to these questions and many more will ultimately end up playing a part in how Manfred is viewed, but his open-mindedness and willingness to discuss all these various issues is significant (in no way, shape or form am I saying Bud Selig was close-minded or anything of the sort).
While some fans may be open to the changes and others are vehemently opposed, the fact that Manfred is exploring all options and is open to change is a good sign.
Baseball purists are in love with the way the game is currently played and that’s fine – baseball is a great sport. However, it’s also a bit naïve to believe the game is perfect.
I disagree with some of the proposed changes and agree with others, but I 100 percent agree with having the conversations.
10 Things I’m Watching In 2015: First Year Managers
As we count down to Spring Training, here’s the fourth installment of my ’10 Things I’m Watching In 2015′ series. Today’s topic: first year managers.
Six Major League Baseball teams will begin the 2015 with a new manager at the helm. The Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago Cubs, Houston Astros, Minnesota Twins, Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers will enter Spring Training with a variety of expectations and hopes that the new manger can lead the team to heights the previous regime was unable to reach.
Since teams change managers for a variety of reasons and teams have varying levels of expectations, it’s unfair to grade every manager on the same scale, but it is interesting to look at how all the current managers fared in their first seasons at the helm.
Arizona Diamondbacks: Chip Hale
Hale is entering his first season as a professional manager.
Atlanta Braves: Fredi Gonzalez
Gonzalez has managed eight seasons and went 89-73 in his first season with the Braves. In his first ever season as a manager he led the Marlins to a 71-91 record.
Baltimore Orioles: Buck Showalter
Showalter led the Orioles to a 69-93 finish in his first full season as manager. Showalter has been a big league manager for 16 seasons. In his first season, he went 76-86 with the Yankees.
Boston Red Sox: John Farrell
Farrell is the dream scenario for managers taking over a new team as he led the Red Sox to a World Series title and a 97-65 record in his first season in Boston. Farrell began his career with the
Blue Jays and went 81-81.
Chicago Cubs: Joe Maddon
Maddon is entering his first season in Chicago. In his first season with Tampa Bay, where he managed for 11 years, he went 61-101.
Chicago White Sox: Robin Ventura
Ventura has led the White Sox for three seasons and posted a 85-77 record in his first season.
Cincinnati Reds: Bryan Price
Price went 76-86 in his first season as a managers.
Cleveland Indians: Terry Francona
Francona led the Indians to a 92-70 record in his first year with Cleveland, but struggled in his first season as a manager as his Phillies went 68-94.
Colorado Rockies: Walt Weiss
Weiss won 74 games and lost 88 during his first season in charge of the Rockies.
Detroit Tigers: Brad Ausmus
The Tigers may have disappointed in the playoffs, but Ausmus’ first season as manager went well as the Tigers finished 90-72.
Houston Astros: A.J. Hinch
Hinch is entering his first year as manager of the Astros. In his first stint as a manager he finished 58-75 with the Diamondbacks.
Kansas City Royals: Ned Yost
Yost received his fair share of criticism in the playoffs, but he’s come a long way. In Yosts’ first
year he led the Brewers to a 68-94 record. In his first year with the Royals, Kansas City went 55-72.
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: Mike Scioscia
Scioscia took over the Angels job 15 years ago and went 82-80 in his first year.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Don Mattingly
Mattingly went 82-79 in his first campaign with the Dodgers.
Miami Marlins: Mike Redmond
The Marlins look to be on the upswing, but in Redmond’s first season they went 62-100.
Milwaukee Brewers: Ron Roenicke:
Roenicke has managed the Brewers for four seasons. In his first season, the club went 96-66.
Minnesota Twins: Paul Molitor
Molitor is entering his first season as a Major League manager.
New York Mets: Terry Collins
Collins began his career 10 years ago with the Astros and went 66-49. In his first season with the Mets he went 77-85.
New York Yankees: Joe Girardi
Girardi made a name for himself after a 78-84 season in Miami. Once he took over in New York, Girardi went 89-73.
Oakland Athletics: Bob Melvin
Melvin found success right away as he won 93 games in his first year with the Mariners. In his first full season in Oakland, he went 94-68.
Philadelphia Phillies: Ryne Sandberg
Sandberg just finished his first full season at the helm in Philadelphia, where the Phillies went 73-89.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Clint Hurdle
Hurdle began his managerial career with a 67-73 season in Colorado. In his first full season in Pittsburgh, Hurdle’s bunch finished with a 72-90 mark.
San Diego Padres: Bud Black
Black has spent the past eight seasons in Colorado, which began with a 89-74 campaign.
San Francisco Giants: Bruce Bochy
Coming off a third World Series Championship in five seasons, it’s hard to argue with Bochy’s
success as a manager. Bochy went 71-91 in his first year with the Giants and 70-74 in his first season in San Diego.
Seattle Mariners: Lloyd McClendon
McClendon cut his teeth in Pittsburgh and went just 62-100 in his first full season as manager. McClendon had better success in Seattle, going 87-75 in his first full year.
St. Louis Cardinals: Mike Matheny
Matheny went 88-74 in his first season in St. Louis
Tampa Bay Rays: Kevin Cash
Cash is entering his first season as a manager. He is also the first former Rays player to manage the club.
Texas Rangers: Jeff Banister
Banister is set to begin his first season as a manager.
Toronto Blue Jays: John Gibbons
Gibbons, who has spent seven years leading the Blue Jays, went 80-82 during his first season in Toronto.
Washington Nationals: Matt Williams
Williams just concluded his first season as a manager and although the Nationals had an early exit in October, they cruised to an NL East title.Williams led the Nationals to a 96-66 season and won the National League Manager of the Year.
Recap of previous entries:
10 Things I’m Watching In 2015: MILB Pitch Clocks
As we count down to Spring Training, here’s the third installment of my ’10 Things I’m Watching In 2015′ series. Today’s focus dips into the Minor Leagues and the pitch clocks that will be featured in AA and Triple-A games.
Pace of play and pitch clocks have been discussed a lot over the past few months and although there won’t be any “20 second clocks” in the big leagues this year, this is still a storyline worth monitoring.
As baseball continues to look for ways to speed up the game and increase the fan experience, pitch clocks will be utilized in both AA and Triple-A games this season. This is a significant step because it shows that after experimenting with pitch clocks in the Arizona Fall League, baseball liked what it saw enough to continue with the new rules.
“It’s something that we’d certainly like to see more testing done with,” Joe Torre, Major League Baseball’s executive vice president of baseball operations, said at the Winter Meetings. “I was never a proponent of introducing the clock in baseball, but I went out [to the AFL], and I was pretty impressed. [The clock] was there, but it really wasn’t intrusive in any way.”
Pitch clocks were enforced at 16 AFL games and the average time of those games was two hours and 42 minutes – 10 minutes quicker than the average AFL game time in 2013.
The use of the pitch clock had a noticeable impact on the pace of the game and if the experiment in the minors goes well, changes may be coming to the majors over the next few seasons.
Pitch clocks have generated a lot of controversy among baseball purists who don’t want to change the way the game has always been played.
However games are getting longer and it would likely be in baseball’s best interest to tackle the pace of play issue sooner – while it is just a minor annoyance – rather than later – when it truly becomes a problem.
Having watched multiple Arizona Fall League games in which the pitch clock was enforced, I came away impressed. The game was noticeably faster and although it felt rushed at time (the system does need fine tuning) it was also an enjoyable experience to watch baseball played at such a crisp pace.
The AFL was a cool experience, but the Minor Leagues will provide baseball with a much larger sample size to evaluate and I’m more than anxious to see how it all plays out.
Recap of previous entries:
San Francisco Giants
Chicago Cubs
10 Things I’m Watching In 2015: Madison Bumgarner And The SF Giants
As we count down to Spring Training, here’s the second installment of my ’10 Things I’m Watching In 2015′ series. Today’s focus is on the defending World Champion San Francisco Giants and their ace Madison Bumgarner.
Look at a team that has won three World Series in the past five seasons and you wouldn’t expect to find a lot of holes. Any team on that sort of run would seem like a near guarantee to at least reach the playoffs.
However, that’s not the way the Giants have operated over the past five seasons.
Yes, the Giants have three rings and the word ‘dynasty’ can be associated with them, but they’ve been a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde case. After winning the World Series in 2010, San Francisco won 86 games in 2011. Then after another championship in 2012, the Giants won just 76 games in 2013.
So, what will happen in 2015?
Certainly the Giants would like to stay away from that recent trend (although if it guarantees another ring in 2016, then who cares about 2015) but in order to do so they’ll need to replace Pablo Sandoval and Michael Morse.
Nori Aoki and Casey McGehee are solid signings, but the player I’m most interested in watching in 2015 is Madison Bumgarner.
The left-hander has been solid for the Giants with four straight seasons of 30 or more starts and an ERA below 3.40, but this season will be different.
After Bumgarner lit up the national stage and posted a 1.03 ERA in 52 2/3 postseason innings in 2014, Bumgarner has become much more of a household name than he was previously.
While his play under the bright October lights would indicate Bumgarner is the type of player that won’t be fazed by his newfound fame, it could be interesting to see what type of encore he puts on.
Recap of previous entries:
10 Things I’m Watching In 2015: Chicago Cubs
Baseball is finally here. To some it may feel like the season just ended, but to those that live and breathe baseball, it may feel like it’s been gone for an eternity. Either way, there are 10 days left until the first official team workouts here in Arizona and to help pass the time I will be releasing a daily blog post about 10 things I’m excited to watch in 2015.
These posts are in no particular order, so if I list your team or favorite player 10th, fifth or first, there’s no reason to read too much into it. I’m anxious for the upcoming baseball season and these are 10 reasons why:
Things I’m watching in 2015:
Cubs
It’s hard not to be excited and/or curious about the Cubs in 2015. After a tremendous off season there will certainly be a lot of eyes not only on Opening Night, but throughout the entire season.
While the Cubs made plenty of moves over the past few months, the biggest were the additions of Joe Maddon and Jon Lester.
It’s hard to argue with Maddon’s resume. Maddon had a winning record in six of his last seven seasons with the Rays and his team won 90 or more games in five of those seasons. Meanwhile, the Cubs have won 90 or more games just once (2008) since the year 2000.
While hiring Maddon would have constituted a solid off-season, the Cubs weren’t done as they then added Jon Lester via a six year deal worth $155 million.
Lester is coming off a season in which he posted a 2.46 ERA, but will have to adjust to the National League – although it’s hard to imagine that being any sort of drastic adjustment for someone who has been as successful as Lester.
The Cubs also upgraded their rotation when the brought back Jason Hamel. Although Hamel struggled with the A’s, he was 8-5 with a 2.98 ERA as a Cub last season.
Lester and Maddon were clearly the Cubs two biggest moves of the off season, but they aren’t the only reason, I’ll be watching the Cubs this season. Dexter Fowler was a solid addition to the Cubs outfield and the progress of Javier Baez will be interesting to monitor as well.
Jake Arrieta is also coming off of his best ever season as he posted a career high in wins (10) and a career low in ERA (2.53)
Kris Bryant has generated a ton of hype and whenever the Cubs top prospect makes his Major League debut, it will undoubtedly be a major story surrounding the team.
The Cubs are littered with players to watch this season and although it may take them a while to learn to win and completely change the culture in Chicago, the Cubs are going to be one of the most fascinating teams to watch next season.
Pitch clocks? So far…..I’m a fan
Maybe I’m in the minority, maybe I don’t have enough respect or appreciation for “the way baseball has always been played,” but so far I’m a fan of the new Pace of Play Initiatives.
For those unaware, Major League Baseball’s Pace of Game Committee is testing several time-saving measures in the Arizona Fall League this season.
Most notably, is the 20-second pitch clock and the two minute and five second clock between innings.
Three games have been played with the pitch clock in effect and the average time of those games has been two hours and 38 minutes. In fact, that time is even a bit high since one of the three games went 11 innings.
Now, the system is not perfect, the Fall League is not directly comparable to a Major League game and tweaks need to be made, but there is certainly potential and I’m a fan.
Through three games there have only been three pitch clock violations which shows me the players are capable of speeding up the game when prompted.
There have also been multiple occasions when a batter has stood in the box with 40 seconds left on the “innings-break clock” another sign that players can move faster.
I’ve also talked to multiple position players about the pitch-clocks and while they admit it is a bit strange to get used to, they also have said that they like it and can feel the game moving faster.
However, there are also some changes that may need to be made. There are some times where the pitcher, especially if he shakes off a sign or doesn’t get a sign from the catcher right away, looks rushed.
There will also be some changes in the running game as the pitcher can basically no longer simply step off the rubber. Within the allotted 20 seconds the pitcher either has to throw to the plate or throw over to the base. He can’t just step off and look at the runner – unless he hops back on the rubber real quick and throws a pitch.
I expect tweaks perhaps toward the end of the Fall League or maybe in next year’s AFL, but I would not be surprised to see pitch clocks in the MLB in the future.
And assuming they resemble what they’ve looked like thus far in the AFL, I’ll be a fan.
*The Fall League has 14 more pitch clock games scheduled so if things change or if there are any unusual occurrences as a result of the pitch-clock I will certainly write another post and let you all know.
Trade Deadline Revisited
As soon as the July 31 Trade Deadline was completed, the A’s and Tigers appeared to be the big winners.
The Athletics had acquired Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel a bit before the Trade Deadline and then acquired Jon Lester in a blockbuster move while the Tigers landed David Price.
As it turned out, those teams went a combined 0-4 in the postseason and the real prize of the Deadline may have been a 31-year old pitcher from Mobile, Alabama.
The San Francisco Giants acquired Jake Peavy, for a couple of pitching prospects, a few days before the Trade Deadline. Peavy went 8-4 with a 2.17 ERA in 12 starts for the National League champions to finish the regular season and is 1-0 with a 1.86 ERA in two postseason starts.
Now it remains to be seen whether or not the Giants will resign Peavy next season, but after winning the National League pennant and reaching a third World Series in the past five years, it’s hard to argue the move wasn’t a success for the Giants.
In addition to the Peavy trade, plenty of other teams were active at the Trade Deadline. Here’s a quick rundown on how everyone performed with their new teams:
A’s acquired Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel: In 16 starts with the Athletics, Samardzija went 8-8 with a 3.14 ERA. Hammel went 2-6 with a 4.26 ERA in 12 starts.
Cubs acquire Addison Russell, Billy McKinney and Dan Straily: Russell, the No. 5 prospect according to MLBpipeline.com, was the prize of this trade for the Cubs and he hit .294 in 50 games with the Cubs AA affiliate.
The Athletics acquired Jon Lester, Jonny Gomes and cash from the Red Sox for Yoenis Cespedes: Lester went 6-4 with a 2.35 ERA in 11 starts, but was also on the mound when the A’s collapse began in the AL Wild Card game. Gomes played in 34 games for the A’s and hit .234 Cespedes hit .269 with five homers and 33 RBI for Boston.
Then, the A’s traded Tommy Milone to the Twins in exchange for Sam Fuld:
Milone appeared in six games, five starts, for the Twins while Fuld played in 53 games and hit .210 for Oakland.
The Cardinals acquired John Lackey from the Red Sox for Joe Kelly and Allen Craig: Lackey went 3-3 with a 4.30 ERA in 10 starts for the Cardinals while Kelly went 4-2 with a 4.11 ERA in 10 starts for Boston and Craig hit .128 in 29 games.
The Brewers traded a pair of minor leaguers (outfielder Mitch Haniger and pitcher Anthony Banda) to the Diamondbacks for Gerardo Parra: Parra hit .268 in 46 games for Milwaukee.
The Padres continued selling and traded Chris Denorfia to the Mariners for Abraham Almonte and minor league pitcher Stephen Kohlscheen: Denorfia hit .195 in 32 games with the Mariners.
A day after trading Justin Masterson to the Cardinals, the Indians traded Asdrubal Cabrera to the Nationals for Zach Walters: Masterson was a disappointment with the Cardinals as he went 3-3 in nine games, six starts, with a 7.04 ERA. Cabrera hit .229 in 49 games with the Nationals and Walters hit .130 in 70 games for the Indians.
The Red Sox traded Andrew Miller to the Orioles for minor league pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez: Miller appeared in 23 games for the Orioles and posted a 1.35 ERA.
Boston was very active at the deadline and concluded its day after trading Stephen Drew to the Yankees for Kelly Johnson: Drew hit .150 in 46 games with the Yankees.
In addition to Drew, the Yankees acquired Martin Prado. In order to get Prado, the Yankees sent Peter O’Brien and either cash or a player to be named later to the Diamondbacks: Prado hit .316 in 37 games as a Yankee.
The Braves acquired Emilio Bonifacio, James Russell and cash from the Cubs in exchange for minor league catcher Victor Caratini: Bonifacio appeared in 41 games for the Braves and hit .212, while Russell posted a 2.22 ERA in 22 appearances with Atlanta.
The Marlins sent outfielder Jake Marisnick to the Astros in return for Jarred Cosart and Kike Hernandez: Marisnick hit .272 in 51 games with his new team and Cosart went 4-4 with a 2.39 ERA in 10 starts with his new club.
The Tigers acquired David Price, the Mariners picked up Austin Jackson and the Rays received Drew Smyly and Nick Franklin: Price went 4-4 with a 3.59 ERA in 11 starts for the Tigers while Austin Jackson hit .229 in 54 games with the Mariners. He also stole 11 bases. In Tampa Bay, Smyly went 3-1 in seven starts and posted a 1.70 ERA and Franklin hit .206 in 11 games.
Obviously these stats do not tell the whole story of who won or lost a trade or whether it was even for both teams as contract situations, cash, prospects and plenty of other factors are up for consideration, but in the break between the championship series and the World Series, it is interesting to look back and see how all those Deadline deals stacked up.
Quick Roster Breakdown of the A’s And Angels
With the Trade Deadline looming and a lot of talk about roster construction, I though it’d be interesting to take a look at the rosters of the top two teams in baseball – the Oakland Athletics and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
Using info obtained from baseballreference.com I looked at the current 25-man rosters of each team and put the numbers – in a variety of categories – side by side.
| Category | A’s | Angels |
| Average Age | 28.96 | 28.88 |
| Players 30+ | 9 | 11 |
| Players Acquired Via… | ||
| Trade | 12 | 9 |
| Free Agency | 6 | 6 |
| Draft | 2 | 10 |
| Waivers | 3 | 0 |
| Purchased | 1 (Jesse Chavez) | 0 |
| Conditional Deal | 1 (Stephen Vogt) | 0 |
| Making $3 million + | 7 | 10 |
| Highest Paid | Yoenis Cespedes ($10 Million) | Albert Pujols ($23 Million) |
| Average Experience | 5.96 | 6.48 |
| Average Attendance | 24626 | 38121 |
What do all these numbers mean? I guess we will find out at the end of the season when one team has won the American League West and the other is likely playing in a Wild Card game.
While this data may not necessarily mean all that much I thought it was interesting to look at and a few things jumped out at me:
- I was not surprised that the Angels had more players over 30 than the A’s, but I was surprised to find the Angels average age slightly below Oakland’s.
- It was also surprising to see how much of the A’s roster is the result of trades. Of course a lot of these trades take place in the lower levels when Billy Beane is wheeling and dealing prospects, but nearly half the roster has been acquired via trade which I found interesting.
- Everyone knows the A’s don’t have a big payroll and the Angels certainly haven’t been shy about throwing money around to coveted free agents. Albert Pujols is the Angels highest paid player, but CJ Wilson ($16 million), Jered Weaver ($16 million) and Josh Hamilton ($17 million) are all making more than the A’s highest paid player – Yoenis Cespedes.
Boor on Baseball 