It comes as no shock, the story of the 2013 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim was how much they underachieved, especially after the way they went out and got some of the game’s elite free agents.
Perhaps it’s just me, but I cannot see the level of talent they have continuing to be so unproductive in Anaheim.
Even at 34 years old, Albert Pujols can still be a very dangerous player. Can he be the .330 hitter with 35 bombs and 125 RBIs like he was in St. Louis? Probably not, but 20-25 homers and 90-100 knocked in isn’t out of the realm of possibility for him, and quite frankly, that’s not asking for much given the talent around him.
I also look at Josh Hamilton who has been one of the game’s elite sluggers for several years as a small shell of his former self. Hamilton, at age 32, probably plays at a level older than 32 because of the massive amount abuse he put his body through as a younger person. But, I don’t think that means Hamilton is washed up at this point. His 2013 was incredibly awful. Hamilton has to pick up his performance in order for Anaheim to get back to the promised land.
Now, let’s not make it sound like the contracts these guys are under are great. Because quite frankly, they are two of the worst contracts in the game. But currently, I think more is still expected from Pujols and Hamilton, and with talent like that in your lineup, it won’t underachieve too long before it resurfaces. I think Hamilton and Pujols could be poised very strong 2014 campaigns.
Obviously this is Mike Trout’s team. Trout is the young stud in Anaheim, and the kid is flat out one of the overall best talent’s I think multi-generational fans have seen. Trout came into camp last year on a little bit of a weight gain (I believe the figure was around 20 pounds), and detractors (and quite frankly ignorant minds) would probably say PED use. Truthfully, at 21 years old, if Trout was working out at all, that was probably a completely natural growth spurt. The beauty of it was, even after gaining that kind of weight, Trout managed to up his OBP, but his power dropped. That’s almost a complete contradiction to a PED argument. Trout became an even more efficient offensive player than he already was. Simply put, Trout is a stud who will only continue to grow his legend, and if he can lead this AARP club to a championship, he might find his name thrown around in the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) discussion, at age 23.
Do I think the Angels are championship contenders as currently constructed? Yes.
When I put together my power rankings earlier this year, I looked at the Angels and saw the last few years of underachievers. But when you go back and look at it, in year one of the Albert Pujols contract, Anaheim won 89 games. They greatly regressed last year in year two of Pujols, and year one of Hamilton. A lot of that had to do with the struggles of Hamilton, but this pitching staff was just a mess. They made big splashes in getting CJ Wilson in 2012, I still maintain that was a great signing. Wilson was very good last year, his supporting cast, however, was not. The struggles of Jered Weaver had are well documented. Their other big acquisition last winter, Jason Vargas also mightily struggled, and the Angels as a whole, struggled to keep key contributors healthy.
In 2014, I fully expect some of those struggles to be righted. I’m not expecting a Cy Young type year out of Weaver or Wilson, but I look for Wilson to continue to be a solid number two starter, and for Weaver to bounce back.
I also like what the Angels did in bringing in Hector Santiago from the White Sox. Santiago was very solid in Chicago. Getting a chance to start a couple handful of games, Santiago struck out almost a batter an inning, and could quickly get on a role when he was right. For the Angels, I think this was a tremendous pickup. I’m not saying Santiago is going to turn himself into an ace in LA, but if you’re looking for a guy you can get consistency from after CJ Wilson in this rotation, Santiago can definitely be that for the Angels.
After Santiago, I’m just not sure what you can expect from the Angels starters. Garrett Richards looks like a nice talent, but he has really struggled to put everything together in the big leagues. At 25, set to turn 26 in May, it’s never a good idea to give up on a guy this early in his career, but Richards has to build off his success in August and early September of last year if he wants to be a permanent part of the future in LA.
The Angels also went out and dealt for former World Series MVP David Freese in the offseason. I have to be honest, I’m not a big Freese guy. Cardinals fans fell in love with him over a couple big hits in the World Series, and deservedly so, but when you look at his overall body of work, Freese is a very average big league third basemen. I understand the Halos needed something at the hot corner better than Alberto Callaspo, but I think they might be hoping for something that isn’t there in Freese. I could very well be wrong. Freese may come to LA, and completely hit off, and be a 20 homer guy, he already hits for a good average, I’ll give him that, and maybe he gets some timely hits night after night. We’ll see. Freese is definitely one of the good guys in baseball, and if he can find some additional success and increased production in LA, the Angels got a steal from St. Louis. Which doesn’t happen often.
One guy I think who needs to have a good year this season is Chris Iannetta. I’ve always been really high on Iannetta offensively, but he’s always left me desiring more. He boasts tremendous ability with the bat, but hasn’t ever put it together. Turning 31 next month, the window of opportunity for Iannetta to have a big year is quickly closing. I’m not asking him to be Joe Mauer or Buster Posey, but a .270 year with maybe 20 to 25 homers and 80 RBIs in the seven-spot in the lineup would be nice. If the Angels can get anything close to that from him, this lineup will benefit greatly from that kind of production.
The final two guys I real quick want to talk about that are as consistent as anything the Angels have had in the past three to five years, and the duo is Howie Kendrick and Erick Aybar. Their stats are never going blow anyone away. But these are guys that get on base. They put up solid numbers through the course of a season, and they do it so quietly it’s hard to believe they’ve been around as long as they have (This will be year nine for both). Sometimes I don’t think these guys get enough credit for the consistency of production they give the Halos on a year-in, year-out basis. I like the way they play, and sometimes it’s unsung, organizational heroes like them that deserve the postseason experiences.
I think the key to the Angels success in 2014 is absolutely the production of their superstars. Hamilton has to bounce back and be better. Pujols needs to continue to build on a 2013 season that wasn’t bad. And the Angels need to find more consistency from their pitching staff.
Do I think they can get all those things? Absolutely.
Yes, talent will only take you so far, but there’s a lot of it in Anaheim, and even if only some of it goes right, the Angels could be looking at the ultimate prize they envisioned when they put this group together.
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