Could the Angels be looking at Dan Uggla?

When you could just call Wood up and keep those other players as well?

Straight up!

…if Tony Reagins makes ANY trade that either A) does not include a solid relief pitcher or B) is not a complete steal of another team’s middle infielder (I’m talking like the trade that brought Gasol to the Lakers), I will be sorely disappointed in his abilities. He will be less Ninja and more grasshopper…without legs.

Seriously, we do not need another middle infielder.

For a post about how the team needs more hitting after they score 12 runs….

Seriously – the pitching staff is a hospital ward of injuries. If there’s a trade to be made, let it be for pitching. Like it or not, Soth has the uncanny ability to squeeze runs out of this line-up. What he needs is more pitching so that the team can gain 8 or 9 more wins this season by locking down the opponent.

Rodriguez can be exactly the same player Uggla is now. And Wood will be better. Don’t trade our prospects. Find a place for them in the lineup.

when he has the potential to be better than Uggla? I’d do that deal right now if I was the Marlins because:

1. Wood will probably be better than Uggla at his age
2. Wood is still under control for 6 more years
3. Wood is much cheaper than Uggla

Also, we have two 2nd basemen that have very good upside already (Kendrick and Sean Rodriguez). If anything I’d rather have S-Rod starting at 2nd base.

Why should they?

Uggla has two more years of arbitration, then is a free agent in 2012. Since his breakthrough rookie year, his strikeouts have increased dramatically, and while his number of BB increased as well, his BA has fallen since 2006. More disturbingly, his defensive talent hasn’t significantly improved as he finds himself in his fourth full season. The hallmark of Angel teams in the Scioscia era is defense, and Uggla brings none to his game.

Wood, on the other hand, hasn’t completed even one season of service on this FA clock. The Marlins would be stooges not to take the deal, and Reagins should properly be fired for making such an offer. Wood is only 24 now, while Uggla was 26 in 2006 when he entered the bigs. Comparing one with the other in terms of future value is a loser’s game if you’re viewing them straight up, and pure nonsense if you’re proposing Wood, Aybar and an arm for Uggla.

Oh, and as far as Uggla moving to 3B, did you even notice that the Marlins considered that when MigCab was traded to Detroit before the start of 2008, and the team abandoned the idea after watching Uggla work out at the position? As bad as he is defensively at 2B, he’s lost at 3B.