SB Nation - Robb Quinlan

Winter Meetings Open Thread, Wednesday: Kouzmanoff, Perkins, Quinlan

Jesse — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 12:58:29 -0000

5:25 pm - This from ESPN's Jayson Stark: the Padres are making a hard push to move Kouzmanoff.

5:20 pm - HAPPY BIRTHDAY JON MARTHALER!

4:25 pm - Ummm....get this...Rich Harden? Yeah. He's signing with the Texas Rangers.

That's kind of a double-whammy for the Mariners, isn't it? Bit of a shock, for sure.

3:50 pm - More Olney: Rich Harden is on the verge of signing with...someone? No news on who. What are the chances that the mystery team is the Twins? Right now the rotation is probably guaranteed in four of five spots, but this would be a huge signing for Minnesota with big-time repurcussions.

What say you? Is it even possible? Rumor has it that the Mariners have been hot on his trail, but it could be someone else...

2:55 pm - Buster Olney tweets that the Twins and Padres "have had several discussions about Kevin Kouzmanoff".

2:45 pm - Kelsie Smith tweets that that the Twins' talks with Mark DeRosa's agent were "preliminary".

1:35 pm - A quiet afternoon for the Twins so far, but Ken Rosenthal tweets that LaTroy Hawkins will be pitching for the Brewers next year. Flame on, LaTroy!

10:50 am - Some highlights from LEN III's morning update, I suggest you pop over for a gander...

The Twins met with DeRosa's agent yesterday. Neal admits that DeRosa's been rumored to be asking for three years and $27 million, but also believes that a wave of non-tenders this weekend could drive down prices.
The agents for Pedro Feliz? They're getting the silent treatment. Can you just see Bill Smith, Rob Antony and company whistling and looking the other way as Feliz's agents walk by in the lobby?
Nothing is imminent with Quinlan.
This is surprising: the Twins tried to sign Boof to a one-year deal recently and were turned down. Looks like it was either one or the other, and we know how that story turns out.

9:40 am - Over at MLB Trade Rumors, Tim Dierkes rounds up the speculation over who Minnesota's likely third base targets are. He mentions the usuals: Adrian Beltre, Mark DeRosa and Felipe Lopez. And then he adds another one...Juan Uribe. Out of all of those players, the last one I would want would be Uribe.

Adding Joe Crede and Kevin Kouzmanoff to that list, and now we finally have a solid group of players to speculate on. Out of those six, who do you prefer?

7:15 am - A couple things I've read this morning...

First, "talks with Joe Crede are progressing slowly" with the Twins. That's interesting. I would have thought the Twins might try something else before going back to Crede, but perhaps they're just trying to keep their foot in the door.

LEN III in his late-late-late edition last night also said the Twins have interest in Mark DeRosa. Now, this isn't necessarily a surprise, but it's the first we've heard his name tied to the Twins this week.

6:50 am - Wrapping up the last two days before we get into what could be a very interesting day 3...

1. Carl Pavano accepted arbitration. The number people seem to be throwing out there is $7 million, although if the Twins sign him for two years they might be able to get away with $5 million per.

2. The biggest tidbit to come out of Tuesday involved the Twins and Padres discussing a Glen Perkins/Kevin Kouzmanoff swap. San Diego rejected the one-for-one deal, as they're looking for more. The Padres also were linked by Kouz to the Giants yesterday, but once again were looking for more than San Francisco's initial offer.

3. Speaking of the Giants, it sounds like they're shying away from Dan Uggla. The Orioles remain interested, but what about the Twins?

4. The sad news from yesterday: Boof Bonser was designated for assignment. I'm confident he'll sign on with somebody, and be able to contribute in 2010.

5. The Twins are also rumored to be interested in utility man Robb Quinlan, probably as a fourth outfielder.

6. There were a lot of rumors yesterday evening about three teams (one being the Cubs) and a number of players (one being Milton Bradley). A report from earlier in the evening said one team was a "surprise" American League club. Would the Twins be interested in moving Delmon Young in order to fit Bradley? How would you feel about a Michael Cuddyer/Denard Span/Milton Bradley outfield?

7. As we continue to discuss the Winter Meetings at length on the main page, don't forget to vote for the next top prospect! Every day Roger (in conjunction with Seth Stohs) is asking you: who is the next best prospect? If you haven't yet, head over to the FanPosts and vote on yesterday's ballot, and be sure to make your voice heard this afternoon on the next one.

8. Last but certainly not least, be sure to check out our own Jon Marthaler on Seth's podcast!

Winter Meetings Open Thread, Tuesday: Pavano Accepts Arbitration

Jesse — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:33:42 -0000

9:00 pm - Random update from Jon: I'll be on Seth Stohs' podcast about 9:25pm Central time, presumably to make jokes about Nick Punto showing up at the Winter Meetings to dive headfirst into Marirott lobby plants.

3:05 pm - Over at LEN III's blog he chats about Bonser's departure, done in order to create room for Pavano on the 40-man roster. He also continues to speculate that Perkins could be traded, and brings up something that's been discussed here before but would be an immense surprise to me if it actally happened: the potential for Jesse Crain to be non-tendered.

2:35 - Aaron Gleeman re-Tweets from Lyle Spencer: Twins are interested in Robb Quinlan, and they aren't the only team to be so inclined.

2:20 pm - Peter Gammons is to leave ESPN following his assignment at the Winter Meetings. I love Gammons, so this makes me sad. Hopefully he continues to be a baseball correspondent in some form.

2:05 pm - As noted in the comments and courtesy of Kelsie Smith, the Twins have designated Boof Bonser for assignment. Au revoir, Boof. It's a shame it has to end this way, because I really do think he had something to offer this club. Unfortunately he's become a casualty of depth; it's a shame he couldn't be traded.

1:05 pm - A few notes on names of interest as the first big trade of the Winter Meetings nears completion (Yankees-Tigers-Diamondbacks)...

LaTroy Hawkins is hoping to get a deal done with the Astros. Hawkins turns 37 in a couple of weeks.
Sounds like the Orioles are still the leading candidate to land Dan Uggla.
As fischean pointed out, Ryan Church has been designated for assignment. Does anyone think the Twins would be interested in him as a fourth outfielder?
This three-way deal sounds like it'll be a pretty big deal...

Noon - From LEN III's mid-morning update...

The Padres want to speak to the Twins about Kevin Kouzmanoff. Remember when we were talking about him for about four straight days last year?
Sounds like the agent for Pedro Feliz wants to feel up out the Twins as well.
He believes Boof Bonser could be made available, and that the Padres (probably in relation to Kouz) might be interested in Glen Perkins.

11:15 am - Joe C. projects that if Pavano makes $7 million through arbitration (I still want to think that's high) then Minnesota's opening day payroll is already at $90 million--without making another move or extending Joe Mauer.

11:05 am - Kelsie Smith has an email from Pavano where he explains why he's staying with the Twins. I don't want to share the whole thing, because Kelsie deserves a look for having it in the first place, but this line struck me:

Or I accept arbitration and work out a deal with a team that is strong in character and talent, as I have already experienced, with a staff that is the one of the best I've had in baseball, and in a division where our rival last year is rumored to be unloading some of their top players with other teams in the start of a rebuilding phase.<.i>

10:40 am - Over at his blog, LEN III speculates that with Pavano accepting arbitration, Glen Perkins is expendable pitcher numero uno. Do you agree?

6:30 am - Rounding up some Twins-related news from yesterday before we kick off the second day of the Winter Meetings.

Carl Pavano was one of three potential free agents to accept arbitration, along with Rafael Betancourt and Rafael Soriano. And that's...pretty much it! Perchance day two will bring more news, but I guarantee it'll continue to bring more speculation...

Lackey and Figgins Only Angels Offered Arbitration

Rev Halofan — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 01:21:21 -0000

The Angels offered arbitration to 2 of their 4 arbitration eligible free agent players, John Lackey and Chone Figgins, even though free agents Darren Oliver and Vladimir Guerrero would have brought them compensation (in the form of sandwich and 2nd round picks) should they have been offered arbitration and declined it before signing with another team.

This info is according to Mark Polishuk at MLB TRADE RUMORS.

If Lackey and Figgins sign with other teams, the Angels could reap a bounty of compensation picks in the 2010 June draft. The risk at offering Oliver and Guerrero arbitration would have been that salary raises are based on increasing the previous year's take and both players were making a peak income in 2009 based on the current market for their services. Both Guerrero and Oliver could still be signed by the Angels.

Figgins and Lackey have until Monday to accept or reject the offer of arbitration. Bet you a dollar that they both turn it down. Free agents Kelvim Escobar and Robb Quinlan performed below the compensation threshold and were not involved in this ancient offseason ritual.

Poll

If you can re-sign either Figgy or Big John, who do you re-sign

Chone Figgins

247 votes

John Lackey

635 votes

Take the draft picks and stock the farm

156 votes

1038 votes | Poll has closed

Scott Kazmir Tuneup is Angels Win #96

Rev Halofan — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 22:39:58 -0000

More photos » by George Nikitin - AP

2 months ago: Los Angeles Angels' Gary Mathews Jr. is greeted at the dugout after scoring in the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2009 in Oakland, Calif. (AP Photo/George Nikitin)

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Final Score in Oakland: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 4, Oakland Athletics 2

Pitcher Scott Kazmir looked sharp in his short outing Saturday afternoon. He allowed 3 hits and a walk in 5 IP, striking out 3. Of his 76 pitches, 53 were strikes and he looked ready for his next start a week from tomorrow in Fenway Park. Matt Palmer was impressive in 2 innings of relief, striking out 3 with only 28 pitches thrown.

Angels benchwarmers drove in all four runs, with a Gary Matthews RBI double in the 4th inning complementing Robb Quinlan's run-scoring single in the 2nd and a double in the 4th that scored Matthews. Brian Fuentes pitched a scoreless 9th for his 48th Save of the season, 2nd all time for an Angel pitcher single season mark to Francisco Rodriguez last season. Fuentes leads the majors in Saves.

Poll

Panther of the Game

Erick Aybar

17 votes

Scott Kazmir

154 votes

Robb Quinlan

87 votes

258 votes | Poll has closed

2009 Angels Position Prospects, Historically Speaking

rghan — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 21:53:57 -0000

How good, historically speaking, were our best prospect performances in 2009? The short answer is, pretty good. According to the stat OPS+, Halos position prospects Carlos Ramirez, Dillon Baird, and Alexia Amarista put up some of the best performances of the decade. Not bad for a system widely criticized as having left its best days behind.

OPS+ adjusts offensive contributions to league and competitive context, so it's really the best stat to use when looking at performances across levels. Simply put, OPS+ is the best shorthand I know of making an apples-to-apples comparison of a player hitting .300 in the Midwest League to a player hitting .300 in the Pacific Coast League.

First, let's take a look at the best numbers. Here's a list of decade-best offensive performances over at least 100 PA's by OPS+. 2009 guys are in italics.

OPS+ PLAYER PA's LEVEL AGE YEAR

201 Carlos Ramirez 190 Adv_Rook 21 2009

193 Roberto Lopez 319 Adv_Rook 22 2008

193 Seth Loman 199 ASL_Rook 21 2007

188 Chris Pettit 266 A-Ball 22 2007

181 Dallas McPherson 302 AA 23 2004

180 Sammy Swenson 267 Adv_Rook 23 2001

177 Dallas McPherson 136 Adv_Rook 20 2001

177 Sergio Contreras 201 Adv_Rook 20 2000

176 Matthew Sweeney 202 ASL_Rook 18 2006

173 Howie Kendrick 337 A-Ball 20 2004

Notice any patterns here? Half of the best OPS+'s were put up by college kids in advanced rookie ball, where significant diversity of age and talent makes it relatively easy for older draftees to stand out. Still, Orem catcher Carlos Ramirez performed better than 85 other college kids with over a hundred rookie league PA's, and that demands recognition. He got on base in exactly half of his PA's. Moreover, if you add his numbers from the Pioneer League playoffs, his season line reads even better: a 219 OPS+ with 10 homeruns across 214 rookie ball plate appearances. He's a guy to watch next year.

But we're interested in guys who put up a larger sample size, so let's look at only the best performances of players who got at least 250 PA's and see if any more 2009 draftees float to the top.

OPS+ PLAYER PA's LEVEL AGE YEAR

193 Roberto Lopez 319 Adv_Rook 22 2008

188 Chris Pettit 266 A-Ball 22 2007

181 Dallas McPherson 302 AA 23 2004

180 Sammy Swenson 267 Adv_Rook 23 2001

173 Howie Kendrick 337 A-Ball 20 2004

173 Chris Pettit 272 Adv_Rook 21 2006

171 Howie Kendrick 312 AAA 22 2006

170 Dillon Baird 250 Adv_Rook 21 2009

167 Jose Fernandez 522 AAA 26 2001

167 Dallas McPherson 339 A+ 22 2003

Again, we see one player from 2009, this time Ramirez' Orem teammate, first baseman Dillon Baird. If you're curious, Randall Grichuk's age 17 season in the ASL ranks 25th on this list. Trout didn't have enough PA's to qualify.

Next, let's acknowledge that it's a far more difficult thing to outperform your peers over a full season, rather than just a half season. Here's a list of the decade's best performances by OPS+ over 500 or more PA's.

OPS+ PLAYER PA's LEVEL AGE YEAR

169 Dallas McPherson 573 AA, AAA 23 2004

167 Jose Fernandez 522 AAA 26 2001

163 Sean Rodriguez 724 AAA 23_24 2008+2009

158 Chris Pettit 573 A, A+ 22 2007

156 Brandon Wood 595 A+ 20 2005

153 Mike Campo 569 A+ 25 2002

144 Alexia Amarista 557 A 20 2009

143 Mike O'Keefe 537 AA 24 2002

142 Mike Napoli 584 A+ 22 2004

141 Robb Quinlan 588 AAA 25 2002

Cedar Rapids' second baseman Alexia Amarista is the next '09 name to pop up, which is something of a shock due to his lack of power relative to the other guys on the list. He had a very, very good season in a league that is very, very hard on hitters. I also included split seasons in this list, giving Dallas McPherson credit for his historic 2004 campaign in AA and AAA, and Chris Pettit for his very good season in A and High A. For Sean Rodriguez, I collapsed his '08 and '09 AAA seasons into a single line - he deserves to be remembered for his fine work there.

Sure, 2009 was no banner year for the Halos system, especially at the higher levels, but it did see some very good performances by players new to the organization. Those performances rank right up there with the best of a talent- rich decade, so I think it's fair to say that the pipeline is not running dry.

Angels Defeat Orioles 5-1, John Lackey Wins His 8th

cupie — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 02:07:43 -0000

More photos » by Rob Carr - AP

Look how long Bobby Abreu's arm is...

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John Lackey had to be the ace of the Angels' staff Friday night after Jered Weaver got slapped around on Friday. He danced around 7 hits in 7 innings pitched, allowing only 1 run and got his 8th win of the season.

The Angels remain 4.5 Games ahead of the Texas Rangers in the AL West.

The big hit was a Juan Rivera bases loaded single that would have only allowed one run had Adam Jones not made an error. It cleared the bases after Oriole outfielder's miscue.

The Angels did all of their scoring in a 5-Run 3rd inning, when they batted around, bashing around Oriole Rookie Brian Matusz in his Camden Yards debut. I was at a wedding and missed the game, but checked the final score on my phone and all this news was almost as good as the cake. That is how good the cake was, because the Angels needed a sweet start by Lackey and the Frosting of a Robb Quinlan RBI and a Brian Fuentes 1-2-3 save with 2 on and no out in the 9th is pretty sweet. But it was damn good cake.

Poll

Pick a Panther:

John Lackey

269 votes

Brian Fuentes

9 votes

Juan Rivera

26 votes

Robb Quinlan

5 votes

309 votes | Poll has closed

John Lackey Twinkie Fest a Sweet Angels Homer Show

Rev Halofan — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 04:41:18 -0000

More photos » by Mark Avery - AP

Like a JEDI Mastah, I tell ya!

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Final Score in Los Angeles of Anaheim: Angels 6, Twins 3

John Lackey had one bump in the road, Joe Mauer, and the bump hit him twice for solo HRs, but Lackey's Angels picked him up with a solo HR by Jeff Mathis, a 2-Run HR by Robb Quinlan and a 3-Run HR when it mattered most by Mike Napoli. Twins starter Francisco Liriano got touched up by the Halos in the loss and Lackey earned his 97th regular season victory in an Angels uniform. It was the Angels' 7th win in a row. The team is 15-5 in July and have only lost once since the All-Star Break.

Rookie Kevin Jepsen came in to relieve Lackey and face Mauer in the 8th inning with a man on and induced a ground out to Chone Figgins at 3B. Jepsen surrendered a run on two singles in the 9th inning but the game really wasn't even that close. On a night where Quinlan and Mathis homered, as well as Howie Kendrick 3 hits, you wouldn't really figure the opponent stood a chance.

The Twins, close in the AL Central, looked gassed, suffering from last night's dizzying blown save by the heretofore untouchable Joe Nathan as well as visions of the Central Division leader White Sox enjoying a perfect game hours before their miserable defeat. But this team swept the Angels in their Hankiedome in April so it is not a minor league free pass facing All Stars like Mauer, Justin Morneau and the ghost of Kirby Puckett, who was obviously hanging with some ghost girls at Disneyland or somewhere else.

Poll

Panther of the Game

John Lackey

105 votes

Jeff Mathis

5 votes

Mike Napoli

107 votes

Robb Quinlan

21 votes

238 votes | Poll has closed

THURSDAY ANGELS ROUNDUP: Lincecum Mad, Vlad is Glad

WiHaloFan — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:11:48 -0000

More photos » by Marcio Jose Sanchez - AP

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Angels rally in 8th to complete sweep of Giants - Los Angeles Times
Wednesday's win over Lincecum, who leads the NL with 112 strikeouts, added some legitimacy to the Angels' recent run of success, which they hope continues with this weekend's Freeway Series against the Dodgers in Anaheim. "We've earned everything we've gotten -- we've played well and we've won," Scioscia said. "We beat one of the best pitchers in the game this afternoon, and you can see first-hand why he's so good. So, we can carry a little momentum with that."

Lincecum angry after loss - Marin Independent Journal
Even Tim Lincecum isn't immune to the insidious power of the Rally Monkey. How else do you explain the Giants' 4-3 loss to the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday? Lincecum didn't appear to make a single mistake in the eighth inning, but a two-run lead still evaporated on his watch after a series of eerily familiar bloops, seeing-eye grounders and infield choppers.

Robb Quinlan lifts Angels on defense - Los Angeles Times
Mike Scioscia once said of utility player Robb Quinlan, "He makes the plays he makes," which sounds like a back-handed compliment but wasn't meant to be.

Angels' Guerrero tests his arm | guerrero, hunter, outfield, scioscia, right - Sports - OCRegister.com
Quietly, Guerrero has begun an every-other-day throwing routine with an eye toward returning to right field in a matter of weeks.

Iowa prep pitcher K's 18 in 6-inning perfect game -- chicagotribune.com
A perfect game is one thing. But Norwalk High pitchers Matt Dermody and Kole Klocko nearly pulled off a perfect doubleheader. Dermody, a senior, struck out all 18 batters he faced in a six-inning perfect game Monday night. Klocko, a junior, closed the doubleheader against South Tama High with a five-inning no-hitter, striking out 10 while issuing just one walk.

Angels Beginning to Rise from Ashes | Bleacher Report
The Los Angeles Angels have spent the first two and half months of the season living life in a washing machine, carelessly tossed and turned, flipped and churned, before wading through the suds to find what’s left. How the Angels avoided what seemed to be an inevitable drowning is beyond me, but they’ve done it and here they are as we welcome the afternoon of June. If there has been a team in the big leagues that has dealt with more than the Angels in such a short period of time, please, show me.

MLB Power Rankings - Top 30 MLB Baseball Teams - FOX Sports on MSN
Angels move up 4 spots to #10

The two keys to rest of the season | Angels Unplugged | Los Angeles Times
One is still back in the minor leagues, the other not sure how his surgically repaired shoulder will hold up. But, in many ways, Howie Kendrick and Kelvim Escobar hold the keys to the rest of this season for the Angels.

Weaver vs. Weaver set for Saturday - Angels blog - OCRegister.com
Since the game will be played in an American League park, the DH rule will be in effect. Jered joked that if he ever had to pitch to his older brother, he’d throw his pitches "high and tight".

I don't know what to think about this:

Poll

If you were a major league pitcher facing your brother, would you...

Bounce one off his melon.

84 votes

Give him one to hit.

16 votes

Pitch to him just like everyone else.

151 votes

251 votes | Poll has closed

John Lackey Still a Giant Killer, Angels Win in Frisco

Rev Halofan — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 05:27:16 -0000

FINAL SCORE IN FRISCO: 2002 World Champions 9, Home Team 7

So John Lackey is still a candidate for being the Angels Ace. On a day when it was announced that the Ervin Santana has a sore elbow and will be mssing a start and the Kelvim Escobar will be headed to the Disabled list and then most certainly to the bullpen, Lackey had a night to remember, striking out 10 Giants as if it were Game 7 of the World Series.

Robb Quinlan had 3 hits including a rally-starting 2 run double at the beginning of a 7-Run 4th inning. The Giants probably wished for the return of Scott Spiezio in the face of a such a rally. That Juan Rivera and Bobby Abreu hit homeruns was a nice surprise, but not totally unexpected, and even a HR by Sean Rodriguez, the minor league callup who currently leads the PCL with 21 bombs was an affirmation of Angel fan hopes, but an Erick Aybar mash to deep left field basically showed that the mojo was on the Halo Side of the fence tonight, even though it did come off of a shell of his former self Barry Zito.

Torii Hunter got a rib contusion slamming into a wall so the smart money is on a Reggie Willits callup after Sean O'Sullivan finishes his emergency start in place of Santana Tuesday Night. So even as the Angels celebrate their 4th win in a row and creep closer to Texas division lead (they are now only two games back), they are breaking out the scotch tape and elmers glue to hold together what many had mistaken for smoke and mirrors.

Oh... there was this whole problem late in the game with the Angels bullpen but it helped Brian Fuentes get a Save, Yippee!

Poll

Panther of the Game

John Lackey

175 votes

Brian Fuentes

7 votes

Robb Quinlan

56 votes

238 votes | Poll has closed

With Fuentes Aboard, are the Angels Set?

Rev Halofan — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 08:00:12 -0000

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim finished a great 2008 with the New Year's eve signing of closer Brian Fuentes. The 2 year deal vests a 3rd season if Fuentes closes 55 games in 2010. If this is the final piece of the puzzle, have the 100-Win Angels improved much? If the season were to start today, would they be ready to defend their division title? The lack of any obvious addition out there along with the team's depth could lead a casual observer to believe that General Manager Tony Reagins could go on a three month sabbatical today and still compete for a world championship.

STARTING PITCHING: The Angels bring back 4 of their 5 starting pitchers form last season - John Lackey, Ervin Santana, Jered Weaver and Joe Saunders. Jon Garland declined arbitration. If the season started today, the fifth starter for the Angels would be one of: Dustin Moseley, Nick Adenhardt, Shane Loux, Nick Green or Anthony Ortega. Look for the battle for #5 to be the story of the Spring in an otherwise set Angels mound.

RELIEF PITCHING: The Bullpen lost Frankie Rodriguez but almost makes up for it with Lefty Brian Fuentes anointed as the Angels' closer. The insurance the team has behind him is sick - Scot Shields and Jose Arredondo could easily be in his shoes. Lefty Darren Oliver accepted arbitration and Justin Speier will pretty much have to be worse than ever to be released, so any improvement will ensure he is the mop of the pen. Kevin Jepsen and Jason Bulger pretty much muscle out anyone else even thinking about cracking this bunch. Darren O'Day and Chris Bootcheck are gone from the organization, by the way.

OUTFIELD: Look for Torii Hunter to start in CF 150 times this season. Juan Rivera signed a 3-year deal in the offseason, so LF is his to lose. Vladimir Guerrero will be testing out that Colorado-Kobe-Doctor knee to play RF and Gary Matthews jr will be baseball's highest paid rover on days Vlad DHs. Reggie Willits looms as a pinch-running option but there is always the hope for a non-roster invitee to make Mike Scioscia suffer an interesting Spring.

CATCHER: There is no reason to not start a healthy Mike Napoli 120 times this seaosn and DH him in games where Jeff Mathis rests him. If Mathis is not traded, this DHing scenario is a better reason for Scioscia to carry 3 catchers at the major league level (Bobby Wilson and Ryan Budde are interchangeable as Hank Conger still needs seasoning in the minors) than his 2005 Molina-x-2 +Pope Josh Paul scenario.

FIRST BASE: The organization traded away favorite son Casey Kotchman and a pitching prospect for the Yankees' 1st round pick and a sandwich pick (plus two months of a Departed Scott Boras client) because they believe in Kendry Morales so much. There is always the occasional Robb Quinlan appearance at this spot, but if Hank Conger were to make strides this season in AA, Mike Napoli trying out at 1B in an experimental improvisation is not out of the question if Morales cannot make it as an everyday producer. Organizational depth-wise, the fingers are still crossed on Mark Trumbo, but even a breakthrough first half will not see him making a difference in L.A. of Ana in '09.

SECOND BASE: As long as Howie Kendrick keeps crowding the plate he is going to keep getting bones in his hand and wrist bruised and broken - maybe 2009 will be the year he dodges the inside pitch and hits 60 doubles, maybe it will be the season that the pitch does him in - oh, and then there are those hamstrings. Sean Rodriguez is scratching at the door and Maicer Izturis needs a place to play, too.

THIRD BASE-/-SHORTSTOP: The odd men out seem to be a quickly aging Chone Figgins and Maicer "Uhmembah Me?" Izturis. Incumbent Erick Aybar might be on more than one sheet list for missing the bunt last October, but that glove sure helps the pitching staff and he will only be turning 25 this month. Brandon Wood can play either position BUT if he is benched in favor of Figgins, Ranger and A's fans can confidently cheer for their teams' title hopes.

IN SUMMARY: There is just about NO position other than Fifth Starter at which the Angels can drastically improve with absolute certainty, save for signing Manny Ramirez, which they have announced they will not be doing. Juan Rivera will be an improvement over Garret Anderson and some combo of Fuentes/Aredondo/Shields should soften the loss of Frankie's 62 Saves. Kendry Morales will have a tough time filling the shoes of Departed Boras Client, but a combo of Morales and Wood will likely add more to the offense in 2009 than the Figgins-BorasClient combo contributed in 2008.

4 THINGS LEFT TO DO BY OPENING DAY: Jettison Chone Figgins, determine the 5th starter, determine the Bullpen roles, determine the Outfield hierarchy in games where Vlad DHs. Then just play ball...