Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim: Spring Training Information

By Jim
Location: Tempe Diablo Stadium
Pitchers and Catcher Report: February 13th
First game: February 25th
Schedule

Projected Opening Day Lineup

1.Chone Figgins (3B)
2. Howie Kendrick (2B)
3. Bobby Abreu (DH)
4. Vladimir Guerrero (RF)
5. Torii Hunter (CF)
6. Juan Rivera (LF)
7. Kendry Morales (1B)
8. Mike Napoli (C)
9. Erick Aybar (SS)

Bench

Rob Quinlan, Jeff Mathis, Maicer Izturis, Gary Mathews Jr, Brandon Wood

Projected Rotation

John Lackey
Ervin Santana
Joe Saunders
Jered Weaver
Dustin Moseley or Nick Adenhardt or ?

Bullpen

Situational - Darren Oliver, Jason Bulger, Kevin Jepson
7th Inning - Jose Arredondo
8th Inning - Scot Shields
Closer - Brian Fuentes

Who's Out: Francisco Rodriquez, Mark Teixeira, and Jon Garland
Who's In: Brian Fuentes, Bobby Abreu
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What To Watch For: Who's going to be the #5 starter? With the departure of last season's fifth starter Jon Garland, the Angels biggest need is at the end of their rotation. Last season only 13 starts were made from a pitcher not in the regular rotation, 10 of which were made by Dustin Moseley. Moseley figures to have the inside track on claiming the #5 spot, but he will be on a short leash since he was basically ineffective in his 10 starts last season. Nick Adenhart will get a look this spring, however after doing well early last season in Salt Lake and then 3 bad starts with the Angels, Adenhart's season fell apart once he returned to Triple-A. With the addition of DH/OF Bobby Abreu, the Angels have depth to trade from. It could be possible the Halo's make another deal as they did prior to the 2008 season when they traded SS Orlando Cabrera to the White Sox for Jon Garland.

Last season, the Angels had a hard time staying healthy in the infield as Erick Aybar dislocated his finger, Maicer Izturis had surgery on his thumb, and Howie Kendrick battled hamstring injuries. Heading into 2009, the Angels will look to see who's healthy and who plays well enough to man the middle-infield positions. Both Aybar and Izturis are good enough to start on most major league team, and Brandon Wood has nothing else to prove in the minors. With the emergence of Sean Rodriquez, the Angels' middle-infield has become over crowded and ripe for trade. Look for the Angels to make a deal opening a spot for Wood at either third or short.

It appears the Angels will field one of the oldest outfields in baseball in 2009 with Vladimir Guerrero, Torii Hunter and re-signed free agent Juan Rivera all over thirty patrolling the outfield. Add newly signed free agent Bobby Abreu and Gary Mathews Jr., who both will be 35 this season, into the outfield mix and the Angels get even older. The Angels already had a below average defensive in the outfield, they haven't gotten better...just older.

With the trade of last season's opening day first baseman Casey Kotchman, and the subsequent departure of his replacement Mark Teixeira, rookie Kendry Morales takes over the position full-time. Morales has played very well in the minors, however that hasn't translated into major league success. The Angels feel he is ready to play everyday, but watch for him to get a long look this spring, and even into the regular season before being convinced he's truly big league ready.

What To Expect: Someone's going to get traded, but who? The most likely player is Figgins as he's in his walk year and has the most value. Watch for Brandon Wood's spring training stroke to see if he's ready to take over at third base if Figgins is traded or at shortstop freeing up the trade of either Aybar or Izturis. There's no question Wood has the power bat, but can he hit for a high enough average to warrant a full-time job.

Jim covers the Angels on his blog, The Halo Is Lit.